2nd Taiping Open Dance Championships - 22nd October 2011

Organizers, Lim Poh Hu & Shirley Hun, managed to pull together their second championship in as many years. A change of date enabled them to continue what was begun in 2010 and they had obviously learnt much from their first experience and didn't make any repeat mistakes. Hats off to these two lovely people. Its always so refreshing to know people who are never afraid to learn. Bravo Shirley & PH.

It was very much a Malaysian event with dancers coming from all corners of the country to compete in Standard, Latin American and Belly Dancing. If you're wondering why Belly Dancing was included, it is because Shirley also teaches this genre of dance. The event was held at the Persatuan Ong Si Thye Tong hall in Taiping, Perak, which was also used last year. The angle of the floor was moved which made a refreshing change for all.

The championship was endorsed and supported by PDMB, BDFI, IDO, MDA, Perak State Govt and the WDC-AAL. The guest of honor was YB Dato' Ho Cheng Wang and the championship advisor was Mr John Lim. The Chief Adjudicator was Mr Teh Swee Guan. His panel of adjudicators were - Benny Chan, Belman Salihovic, Joanne Leong, Y S Lee, Yukiko Hori, Merle Lau, Richard Hoh, Michael Yeap, Louis Low, Alice Hor, Irene Au, Koh Kin Ho, Tam Kong Choy, John Lee, Billeon Yong, Jocelyn Peh, Annie Ong, Emily Mah and David Ng. The Chief Invigilator keeping an eye on sylabus, rules & regulations was Mr John Lim. Scrutineering was performed by Mr Nixon Ong & Co.

The event ran fairly smoothly, without too much delay and we were all treated to the traditional afternoon rain storm that Taiping is famous for. The evening programme ran well too with everyone enjoying their dinner while being entertained by the best of dancer in the Amateur levels as they fought for placing in their various events.

Here is the list of CHAMPIONS :
(as presented)

Stand Junior Under 16 : Shaun Chew & Reana Low (Selangor)

Standard Amateur Rising Star : Johnston Lim & Nicole Tan (Selangor)

Belly Dance Indv. Novice : Grace Heng (Kedah)

Standard Amateur Open : Johnston Lim & Nicole Tan (Selangor)

Belly Dance Troupe : 2 Five Step Teszia Divas (Perak)

Latin Juvenile Under 9 : Duncan Yeam & Jolene Teh (Selangor)

Latin Junior Under 16 : Mok Wing Kit & Louise Cheow (Perak)

Latin Amateur Rising Star : Johnston Lim & Nicole Tan (Selangor)

Belly Dance Indv. Intermediate : Shanny Tan (Perak)

Latin Amateur Open : Johnston Lim & Nicole Tan (Selangor)

Standard Solo Under 12 : Grace Heng (Kedah)

Standard Solo Under 9 : Jolene Teh (Selangor)

Standard Senior Over 55 : George Tan & M H Hew (Kedah)

Standard Juvenile Under 12 : Duncan Yeam & Jolene Teh (Selangor)

Standard Senior Over 40 : Ooi Hun Teong & Lim Choon Suan (Penang)

Standard Juvenile Under 9 : Duncan Yeam & Jolene Teh (Selangor)

Latin Solo Under 12 : Zoe Lim (Selangor)

Latin Solo Under 9 : Choi Keh Yin (Selangor)

Latin Senior Over 55 : Ian Tan & Christine Eng (Penang)

Latin Juvenile Under 12 : Duncan Yeam & Jolene Teh (Selangor)

Latin Senior Over 40 : Ian Tan & Christine Eng (Penang)

Latin Senior Beginners 40 : Lvy Soo & Yong Thean Loke (Penang)

Latin Novice : Mok Wing Kit & Louise Cheow (Perak)

Beginners Cha Cha : Ervin Kok & Eelynn Kok (Penang)

Latin Ladies : Adele Lim & Crystal Yip (Selangor)

Beginners Jive : Ervin Kok & Eelynn Kok (Penang)

Latin Solo Dance : Zoe Lim (Selangor)

Beginners Rumba : Lee Kah Hong & Jessie Loh (Perak)

Latin Pre Amateur : Tye Jian Jin & Cindy Law (Perak)

Beginners Samba : Ervin Kok & Eelynn Kok (Penang)

Latin Ladies Synchronize : Lee Ying Jin & Chen Poh Hsiang (Penang)

Beginners Paso Doble : Gary Eng & Esther Khoo (Penang)

Latin Malaysia Amateur Closed : Johnston Lim & Nicole Tan (Selangor)

Belly Dance Indv. Intermediate Crystal : Teoh Mei Ling (Perak)

Belly Dance Indv. Novice Crystal : Catherine Ng (Perak)

Belly Dance Indv. Intermediate Diamond : Ong Siew Eng (Perak)

Beginners Waltz : Alvin Hoh & Riena Aiysa (N.S)

Standard Novice : Alan Hoh & Evelyn Lim (Selangor)

Beginners Tango : Patrick Phan & Rebecca Wong (Perak)

Standard Senior Beginners 40 : Lawrence Tang & Ivy Kong (Selangor)

Beginners Viennese Waltz : Patrick Phan & Rebecca Wong (Perak)

Standard Solo Open : Susan Lee (Kedah)

Beginners Foxtrot : Patrick Phan & Rebecca Wong (Perak)

Standard Pre Amateur : Alan Hoh & Evelyn Lim (N.S)

Beginners Quickstep : Patrick Phan & Rebecca Wong (Perak)

Standar Senior Beginners 55 : Lawrence Tang & Ivy Kong (Selangor)

Standard Ladies : #149

Standard Malaysia Amateur Closed : Johnston Lim & Nicole Tan

Congratulations to all the winner and a great effort from all the dancers.

The organizers are confident that they will be able to bring us another segment of the TODC series, they've already confirmed a date. So see you all again at the 3rd Taiping Open Dance Championship on the 15th September 2012 (Saturday) !

1st Singapore Open Dance Championship 2011 - 6th November 2011

This is the first of the 'freedom to dance' events to be held in Singapore. The message from the Chairman of the organizing committee, Mr Tommy Chua, sums it up.

"The inaugural Singapore Open Dance Championship is Singapore's response to the new Freedom to Dance concept, born to provide fairness, integrity and human rights.


This competition is open to anyone who wish to compete in ballroom standard and, or Latin American dancing, irrespective of the dance affiliation.


While respecting all dance fraternities who nurture and promote ballroom dancing, we pledge to stay true to the principles of being neutral while promoting the love for ballroom dancing. Unleash our competitors' desire with the freedom to dance, in any competition, anywhere in the world.


So dancers, do not be afraid ! You have the freedom and rights to dance. With strength and power, together we can change it !


We thank you, my brave and distinguished competitiors from all over the world - you have made this event in Singapore posible !"


A very well written speech which obviously reflected the passion behind the desire & courage to organize this championship. The dancers in turn did not disappoint the organizers and came in impressive numbers from around the world to attend, compete & support the event. For a first time event, having over 200 entries is quite a feat. Tommy, who was advised by Mrs Josephine Tan, pulled together a fantastic event which ran smoothly and was enjoyed by all who were there.

At the helm of the championship on the day was Chief Adjudicator - Mr David Roberts from UK. I have worked with David for more then a decade now and he has always managed to keep everything, from the judges to the organizers to the scrutineers and the DJ's, marshalls and myself, under tight control, managing to split himself into many parts to be able to be 'on the ball' with everything. Nothing ever gets past him and it's such a relief to know he's there. This year David's panel of adjudicators comprised of - Anthony Hurley (England), Alan Shingler (England), Akihiro Hojo (Japan). Masami Suda (Japan), Polina Teplenko (Russia), Sergey Frantsen (Ukrain), Richard Morrissey (Australia), Ednah Asano (Philippines), Edgar Borromeo (Philippines), Shu Chuan Hsieh (Taiwan), Larry Chen (Taiwan), Erwan Phanjaya (Indonesia), Hadi Tjahjono (Indonesia), Kenji Po (Hong Kong), Brenda So (Hong Kong), Lee Man Ho (Korea), Lee Kwang Sik (Korea), Yanling (China), John Lim (Malaysia), Dharshan Wijesooriya (Sri Lanka), Sheng Zhi Chong (Singapore), Tan Why Pong (Singapore), Steven Han (Singapore), Peggy Gan (Singapore) and Andre De Silva (Singapore). The Chief Scrutineer for the event was Ms Agnes Ang.

The souvenir programme this year was a work of art in its own right. With a beautifully elegant cover, they filled it with some much needed information to help inform and educate those attending the event. There were beautiful action pictures and write ups on the two top world professional performers - Katusha Demidova & Arunas Bizokas and Melinda Torokgyorgy & Andrej Skufca. The articles gave great insight into the performers personal lives and their journeys to where they are now in the world competitive scene.

Another difference in the souvenir programme was the interesting way the competitors action photo's were laid out, another piece of art. To further make this a 'book' to take home and actually read, were the two very informative articles about dance. The first was 'Dance - today, yesterday' by Mary Clarke, editor of Dancing Times and 'A brief History of Dance' by David Roberts, president of the UKA. I hope every new/young dancer present at the championship managed to get a copy and take it home with them. These articles are a MUST READ for those who are truly passionate about dance as their art form.

There were many Malaysian couples that decided to attend this inaugural event. They were - Alfred Choo & Cecilia Yong, Vernon Choo & Elie Cheah, Veroy Ng & Loh Weng Che, Tye Jian Jin & Cindy Law, Kelvin Choo & Villy Chai, Siew Wai Lok & Joey Wong, Siow Kai Yaw & Bong Poh Leng, Caitanya Thailan & Natalie Poon, Radhanath Thailan & Saibya Thailan, Mok Wing Kit & Louise Chew, Eric Foong & Ice Kwan, Natasha Poon and Amanda Chan.

The Malaysian couples were entered in almost all the various events. We had our top Amateur couples, Rising Star couples, Pre Amateur, Novice, Junior, Juvenile and even several of our girls in the solo events. The only thing missing was our ballroom standard couples. The couples that attended were all in the Latin American genre of competition. However, our couples did an amazing job of making their presence felt among the highly ranked international couples. Every couple/dancer proved themselves worthy of sharing the floor with the other great talents but a few really stood out. They were - Alfred Choo & Cecilia Yong (Amateur), Siew Wei Lok & Joey Wong (Junior/Pre Amateur), Mok Wing Kit & Louise Chew (Junior/Novice), Eric Foong & Ice Kwan (Juvenile), Siow Kai Yaw & Bong Poh Leng (Senior). All these couples managed to place high in the finals and definitely deserve a mention for their enthusiasm, determination & dedication. I was overjoyed for them.

Here is the list of CHAMPIONS :

Latin Professional Open : Przemek Lowicki & Martina Markova (Poland)

Standard Professional Open : Andrea & Sara Ghigiarelli (England)

Latin Amateur Open : Sarunas Greblikas & Viktorija Horeva (Latvia)

Standard Amateur Open : Steven Grinbergs & Rachelle Plaass (Australia)

Latin Professional Closed AP : Andrey Gorbunov & Dearlie Baculi Gerodias (Singapore)

Standard Professional Closed AP : Jim & Anita Chen (Taiwan)

Latin Amateur Closed AP : Arkady Bakenov & Rosa Filippello (Australia)

Standard Amateur Closed AP : Steven Grinbergs & Rachelle Plaass (Australia)

*****************************

Latin Events :

Amateur Rising Star : Mykyta Yakymchuk & Taisiya Sporysheva (Russia)

Pre Amateur : Siew Wei Lok & Joey Wong (Malaysia)

Novice A : Mok Wing Kit & Louise Chew (Malaysia)

Novice B : Jowe Kwek & Rebecca Sit (Singapore)

Junior Open : Ai Li Zha Ti & Wang Na Na (China)

Juvenile Open : Ai Li Zha Ti & Wang Na Na (China)

Junior Under 16 Solo : Germaine Gan Zi Min (Singapore)

Juvenile Under 12 Solo : Valerie Chen (Taiwan)

Senor Over 35 : Vincent Law & Sheryl Tan (Singapore)

Senior Over 45 : Vincent Law & Sheryl Tan (Singapore)

Pro Am 5 Dance : Evseev Evgeny & Vicki Wong (Hong Kong)

Pro Am 3 Dance : Evseev Evgeny & Vicki Wong (Hong Kong)

Pro Am 2 Dance : Arthur Eroles & Myrna Tan (Philippines)

Pro Am 1 Dance : Sam Fong & Susan De Silva (Singapore)

Teacher Student 2 Dance : Armando Ocampo & Millie Khoo (Singapore)

Teacher Student 1 Dance : Armando Ocompo & Millie Khoo (Singapore)

************************

Standard Events :


Amateur Rising Star : Joel & Sara Smith (Australia)

Pre Amateur : Mark Perez & Maureen Tan (Singapore)

Novice A : Nicholas Yue & Valerie Seah-Yue (Singapore)

Novice B : Kelvin Poh & Tan Ailing (Singapore)

Senor Over 35 : Michael & Rebecca Barlow (Australia)

Senior Over 45 : Lai Kim Sang & Wu Sin Hung (Hong Kong)

Grand Senior Over 60 : Vincent Thoo & Chris Chia (Singapore)

Pro Am 3 Dance : Jason Beaman & Tilly Wong (Australia)

Pro Am 1 Dance : Jason Beaman & Tilly Wong (Australia)

Teacher Student 4 Dance : Lu Tai Lin & Dora Ip (Hong Kong)

Teacher Student 2 Dance : Robert Pavlik & Theresa Ang (Singapore)

Teacher Student 1 Dance : Ramu Ramos & Margaretha Schrijver (Philippines)

***********************************

Congratulations to all the champions and well done to all the competitors.

I'm sure I speak for all dancers when I say, I hope and pray that the 'Freedom to Dance' series of championships will grow around the world so that dancers everywhere can compete without fear of reprimands and expulsions and just be allowed to do what they love among their peers.

The beautiful pictures you see here were taken by one of Dancesports most renown photographers - Mr Rob  Ronda. Please do visit his website robronda.com to view the many other pictures that he captured. Feel free to enquire directly with him if you wish to purchase any copies.

Competitions & Events 2011 - Updated 11th Nov. 2011

4th November 2011, Friday

EVENT : Taipan D'Danceworld & Henry Dance School Anniversary Dinner & Dance

ORGANIZER : Ms Josephine Seow (012-278 1263)

VENUE : Royal Lake Club, Kuala Lumpur

6th November 2011.

EVENT : 1st Singapore Open Dancesport Championship

ORGANIZER : Josephine Tan (singaporeopen@hotmail.com)

VENUE :  Suntec City Convention Center, 1 Raffles Boulevard Suntec City, Singaopre

NOTES : 

- Total Price monies US22100 for Professional & Amateur events in Standard & Latin. please refer to entry form for more   details. 

- Standard & Latin show by Guest Artistes: 

  1) Arunas Bizokas & Katusha Demidova (USA)

  2011 World, British Open, UK Open Professional Ballroom Champions

  2) Andrej Skufca & Melinda (Slovenia)- 

  2011 World, British Open, UK Open Professiona Latin Finalist

- Lectures to be held on 7th Nov. 2011, Monday

  Latin Lecture by Andrej skufca & Melinda (2:00pm - 3:30pm)

  Ballroom lecture by Anthony Hurley (4:30pm-6pm) 

  Venue : LeDanz at  Suntec

13th November 2011, Sunday

EVENT : The 2nd Thailand International Ballroom Dancing Championships 2011

ORGANIZER : Thailand Association of Teachers of Dancing (TATD)

VENUE : Dusit Thani Hotel , Napalai Grand Ballroom Bangkok

NOTES : 

- Accommodation : at The Dusit Thani hotel only just 150 USD/night and The Ambassador hotel only just 80      

  USD/night if  you contact directly to us. 

- Ticket Price: We have a Big band, Big dance floor with elegance place, ticket sitdown dinner 150 USD, 100 USD,

  and 80 USD. Really special price for competitors 80 USD only.

19th November 2011, Saturday

EVENT : Official launch of Dancers' National Association (DNA) & Mini competition

ORGANIZER : DNA - Ms Josephine Seow, President (+6012.278.1263) & Ms Carmen Cheung, V.President         (+6012.206.6093)

VENUE : Bangunan Peladang, Jalan Templer, Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia

26th November 2011, Saturday

EVENT : 18th Penang International Open Ballroom Dancing Championships 2011 & 2nd Penang ADC-AL Open Championship.

ORGANISER : Malaysian Dancers Association (mdamy@streamyx.com)

VENUE : Bayview Beach Resort, Penang, Malaysia

4th December 2011, Sunday [UPDATED]

EVENT : Queen Cup Ballroom Dancing Championship 2011

ORGANIZER : Yulia Phanjaya (dance_indo@yahoo.com)

VENUE : Nelayan Seafood Restaurant, Jakarta, Indonesia

10th December 2011, Saturday [UPDATED]

EVENT : 11th Sabah Open 2011 Dancesport Championship.

ORGANIZER : Imperial Ballroom Dancing School (ibdsymmc@yahoo.com)

VENUE : Kota Kinabalu, Sabah

18th December 2011, Sunday [UPDATED]

EVENT : Dance For Good Health, Peace & Joy 2011 (Line Dance get together & exchange)

ORGANIZER : Bunga Raya

VENUE : Wisma Tiong-Hua Johor Bahru, 8 Jalan Keris, Taman Sri Tebrau,Johor Bahru, Malaysia

Dance workshop in December people. See if you can make it.

Those of you attending the official launch of the new Dancers' National Alliance (DNA) or participating in the competition at the same event, please take note of the change of venue. It is now at Bangunan Peladang, Jalan Templer, Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Event Programmme

9:30am - Official Launching of DNA
9:40am - Dance Fashion Show
10:00am - Competitor Registration
10:30am - Buffet Brunch
11:00am - Start of Competition
3:00pm - End of Competition

4:00 to 6:30pm - Dance Workshop

4th November 2011

Leaving for Singapore tomorrow morning for the 1ST SINGAPORE OPEN DANCESPORT CHAMPIONSHIPS (SODC) organized by Josephine Tan of John & Josephine Dance Creative. Event is on Sunday, 6th November at the SUNTEC Convention Center ballroom. Competition starts at 8:30am so get an early night on Sat everyone so we can be bright and alert on Sunday. Those of you travelling down on Sat, like me, be safe.

4th November 2011

Working the annual graduation of HENRY SCHOOL OF DANCING & TAIPAN D'DANCEWORLD tonight at the Royal Lake Club. Event starts at 7pm with many performances by students who recently sat for their exams. Should be fun!

A Poetic Rhapsody' presented by Han Fong Dance Troupe
Date：26/11/2011
Time：3pm & 8pm
Venue：Panggung Bandaraya DBKL
Tickets by donation : RM30
Contact：Miss Tan：0122631299 / Miss Yikke：0123998467

Another new organizer coming into the field. Starting small but I'm sure it'll run well

Give them some support !

21st October 2011

Getting ready to travel north for the 2nd Taiping Open Dance Championships 2011 organized by Ms Shirley Hun & Mr Lim Poh Hu. For those of you who are competing, please take note that registration & practice commences at 11am on 22nd Oct., Saturday. Competition commences at 12 noon with the Latin events. All the best everyone and those of you who are driving up, like me, be safe.

3rd MODF 2011 Official DVD for sale !

Competitors & spectators of the 3rd MODF 2011 !!! Please note that DVD's are available of of the said championship which was held in August at Berjaya Times Square Hotel. These professional DVD's are now being offered in CATEGORIES (belly dance, hip hop, new jazz, line dance, latin, standard) for those who would like to purchase a copy. They also have copies of the full day events live if you should wish to have a set. Fell free to contact them for more details.

Event: 3rd Malaysian Open Dance Festival 2011 Venue: Berjaya Times Square Date: 27th Aug 2011 Support & Production Team: Emerald Event & I See Media & Arts Production Website:www.iseemediaarts.com Email: info@iseemediaarts.com For DVD Orders, please visit our Store @ http://store.iseemediaarts.com/ Thanks!

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2nd Bellare International Championship, Singapore

Here's the link to some photo's of the event :

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150328714530965&set=a.10150270159875965.344941.31856890964&type=1&theater