Interested In Competitions?

Interested In Competitions

If you enjoy ballroom dancing a possible avenue for you to explore is competition dancing or Dancesport as its now called.

For many the thought of pinning a number to their back and taking to the floor is not a happy prospect.  Well forget that, competitive dancing is great fun and will improve your dancing ability. If you are interested, here’s a short introduction to getting started.

First off there are opportunities to compete no matter what your level or age. There are events that cater for competitors from social, medalist, amateur and Professional.

So what happens at a dance competition? Most often there are competitions for all ages from young children through to seniors in the three different styles of Ballroom, being Standard, New Vogue and Latin.

‘Recreational Dance Competitor’ is the new starting point for dancers and is restricted to people who have not competed in the Amateur Division.

‘Amateur Dance Competitor’ is a person who enters an Amateur Division competition within an event registered with DanceSport.

‘Professional Dance Competitor’ is a person who enters a Professional Division competition within an event registered with DanceSport.

The Medalist Competitions are for Medalist and there are usually some fun social events included at these competitions.

For the purposes of awarding trophies, prizes or other awards of merit, events in the Recreational and Amateur Division are divided into age groups: Juvenile, Junior, Youth, Adult, Masters I, Masters II, Masters III.

Age group events are restricted to couples who meet the following age restrictions

Juvenile	Both partners must be under 13 years.
Junior	Older partner must be over 12 years and under 16 years, the younger partner must be under 16 years of age.
Youth	Older partner must be under 21 years of age and at least 16 years of age. Younger partner must be over 11 years.
Adult	Younger Partner must be at least 16 years of age, older partner must be over 15 years.
Masters I	One partner must have reached their 35th birthday or more in the calendar year. The other partner must have reached their 30th birthday or more in the calendar year
Masters II	One partner must have reached their 50th birthday or more in the calendar year. The other partner must have reached their 45th birthday or more in the calendar year
Masters III	One partner must have reached their 60th birthday or more in the calendar year. The other partner must have reached their 55th birthday or more in the calendar year

 

Competition Events are designed around the following specified number of dances for the relevant age group.

Juvenile Age Group		Junior Age Group
C Grade	2 dances	C Grade	2 dances
B Grade	3 dances	B Grade	3 dances
A Grade	4 dances	A Grade	4 dances
Open	4 or 5 dances	Open	4 or 5 dances

Youth/Adult /Masters I Age Groups		Masters II & III Age Groups
C Grade	2 or 3 dances	C Grade	2 or 3 dances
B Grade	3 or 4 dances	B Grade	3 or 4 dances
A Grade	4 or 5 dances	A Grade	4 or 5 dances
Open	5 dances	Open	4 or 5 dances

Three different dance styles of Ballroom are:

• Standard
• Latin
• New Vogue

Standard

• Waltz,
• Foxtrot,
• Tango,
• Viennese Waltz,
• Quickstep

Latin

• Cha Cha Cha
• Rumba
• Samba
• Paso Doble
• Jive

New Vogue

• Swing Waltz
• Parma Waltz
• Lucille Waltz
• Tracie Leigh Waltz
• Twilight Waltz
• Barclay Blues
• Charmaine
• Excelsior Schottische
• Merrilyn
• Carousel
• Gypsy Tap
• Evening Three Step
• La Bomba
• Tangoette
• Tango Terrific

The important thing to remember is that dance comps are great fun and although you will be nervous at your first few comps you will soon settle into the way they operate. They also help you focus on your dancing, providing a goal as you strive to become a better dancer, through lessons and practice.

To find out more ask a Studio dance instructor who will be able to advise of competition dates and locations or go to the Dancesport Website