After a break of several years, it was indeed a pleasure for me to be invited back to the popular Singapore Open, an event I enjoyed in its early years as head adjudicator. Organisers John & Josephine Tan have nursed this competition from its infancy and now they enjoy its very popular status in Asia, attracting many overseas couples and adjudicators over two days of competition. Their enthusiasm ensures that competitors in all age groups and grades are catered for, and this year was no exception, with a mere 394 entries from 26 countries necessitating 62 adjudicators from 22 countries under the chairmanship of Luka Fanni. The ultra-modern Suntec International Convention Centre has been the home of the championships for many years. Upon entering the large hall, it was evident that the first day was dedicated to solo plus every grade one can imagine, from juveniles up to and including pro-am, senior, amateur, and professional rising stars in both ballroom and Latin American. An interesting competition was the combined age events from +70 and +90. Never give up dancing!!! In all, there were 122 events, which included some recalls.
Readers, I am sure you can imagine it was a busy and sometimes hectic programme that the adjudicators were faced with. I must say John & Josephine’s keenness to please all age groups in all grades is commendable and popular. However, inevitably this can lead to pressures on their timetable that were apparent during the day.
Having watched some of the young solo dancers, I would like to make a personal comment, especially to the juvenile and junior events. At this stage of their dancing, teachers should ensure the technical priorities are directed at improving footwork, foot styling, and natural posture. Unfortunately, I witnessed many competitors’ incorrect footwork and the girls leaning back far too much, which is not a good foundation for balance and styling. In quickstep, it appears that jumping as high as possible and running as fast as the music allows is the main priority. One can only blame the teachers for not applying the accepted techniques, not the young dancers.
Day 2
This is the premier day of the Singapore Open, commencing at 4 PM. I am sure the adjudicators would have been happy with a well-earned morning off. The first or the major championships was the amateur Latin American, which attracted ten countries. From the first few bars of the Cha Cha Cha, it was evident that we were to be treated to some great dancing. From a semifinal of 12 couples, six couples were selected for the final to take place later in the evening. The professional Latin American was the second highlight. This attracted some of the world’s popular couples from 13 countries. A semifinal of twelve couples was reduced to six for everyone to enjoy later in the evening. The open amateur ballroom attracted five countries, four from Asia and one from Germany. In the Latin American open, ten countries were represented, with a selection of European and Australian couples in addition to the Asian couples. Both these finals were scheduled for later in the evening.
Before the excitement of watching all the excellent amateur and professional couples in the open finals, an official opening and welcoming speech from the organisers John & Josephine followed by the introduction of the 62 adjudicators. In all my years in competition dancing, I have never experienced such a large panel. There was a very entertaining showdance group with many professionals dancing with their pro-am partners. Excellent musical arrangements and clever choreography.
Following the amateur and professional closed championships, the pro-am showcase couples took to the floor. Their performances are always a very popular part of dancing events in Asia. Perhaps the most popular is a wonderful 88-year-old, a charming and generous supporter of the Singapore Open. Of course, I refer to Julie Shen. Together with her teacher and partner, Jason Beaman, they danced a tango. It was wonderful, and I am happy to report she was footwork perfect with a lovely calm topline. All credit to Jason for choreographing suitable basic and standard figures.
Finals
Amateur Open Ballroom
1st: Michael Tang Yujie & Zhao Aini. A dominant performance from this stylish couple from China. Michael & Zhao are stylists that complement the true ballroom style. They are a fine example of maintaining a natural hold and readable choreography. They are not afraid to hover or hesitate musically. They are destined for a great future.
2nd: Kang Linghao & Xing Anran. Another strong performance, who were comfortably second in all five dances. Very good Viennese waltz.
3rd: Jovantan & Julia Maria Scherer. Singapore Champions. They were third in all dances. They have improved since I saw them in Blackpool. I would like to see Jovan soften his shoulder line and place his right hand on Julia’s back and not under her arm. You must give your lady a natural frame to further your improvement.
4th: Franco Hou & Irene Chang from Taiwan. Another very tall couple with nice movement, but rather like my criticism of the third-place couple, you must learn how to hold your partner. Your elbows should be slightly in front of your shoulder joints, not behind. Also, place your right hand on Irene’s back, not under her arm. Improve these fundamentals and you will enjoy success.
Completing this final were:
5th: Daniel Eremeev & Katya Loakina.
6th: Eugene Lee Shijin & Vernus Lou.
Professional Open Ballroom
1st: Stanislav Zelianin & Irina Cherepanova. Reigning world champions delighted the audience with some fine dancing that dominated the final.
2nd: Philip Peng Jianan & Joanne Zhong Jiaci from China. I liked their overall performance. They have the ability to create lovely lines, both in movement and stationary figures.
3rd: Dima & Anna Dakhnovskyi. Ukraine. An elegant couple who move well with a true ballroom flavour and excellent fundamentals.
4th: Evgenii Nikitin & Anastasiia. Russia.
This was a nine-couple final. The remaining couples were representatives of Russia, China, Taiwan, Turkey, and Germany.
I was astounded that, considering there were nine excellent couples, no extra music was ordered by the organisers or the chairman.
Amateur Open Latin American
This was a strong final with excellent performances from all couples, all with interesting styles.
1st: Marco Long Yongkun & Victoria Cheng Jiani. China. They won the CCC, Rumba, and Paso Doble, and second in the other two dances. I was very impressed with Victoria; she has an oily and very rhythmical body action in Rumba, which made their partnership very attractive.
2nd: Valeriu Leontiev & Line Smed. Denmark. First in Samba and Jive, second in the other three. They pushed the winners up to the last bar of Jive music. Excellent Jive. Nice and compact.
3rd: Mirco Lufrano & Karolina. Poland. To finish 3rd in three dances in a quality final is very encouraging, and I am sure we will see their results climb to higher positions. Their best dances for me were their Samba & Paso Doble.
The remaining couples were:
4th: Kevin Baccanale & Darya. Italy.
5th: Howard Chung Yat Ho & Amanda Xu Xinyu. Hong Kong.
6th: Kevin Diluvio & Jam Flores. Australia.
Professional Open Latin American
1st: Klemen Prasnikar & Sasha Averkleva. Slovenia. A no-nonsense performance, they are an exciting couple to watch, winning all five dances. My choice of their dances was their excellent Jive.
2nd: Darren Hammond & Marina Steshchenko. South Africa. I liked their more classical style that portrays each dance so well. Marina has a beautiful action in Rumba, and Darren partners her very well. They could easily have won the Rumba.
3rd: Yury Simachev & Olga Kuzmenko. Hong Kong. A well-deserved third place, confirmed by finishing third in all dances. I liked Yury’s body shaping in Paso Doble; it portrayed masculine Spanish body lines.
The remaining couples that completed this very high-standard final were:
4th: Pietro Lufrano & Natalia. Poland.
5th: Howard Lu Deyu & Jessica Ran Jiao. China.
6th: Igor Ifiand & Aliya Shakirova. Australia.
In addition to the exciting championships and competitions over the two days, we were treated to several very entertaining pro-am demonstrations. These are great supporters of the Singapore Open.
The ultimate highlight and finale of the evening were two wonderful professional couples.
In ballroom, Mirko & Edita Gozzoli are two wonderful dancers who, as competitors, ruled the professional competitive scene. Their show was exciting and justifiably received a super ovation from the audience. I always get emotional when I see Mirko dance because, as a young amateur in Italy, having lessons with his previous partner, I knew he would become a world-beater. I remember a young Edita dancing as a very successful amateur; she had a classical style, and she is well known nowadays for her individual style.
There was much anticipation for the last of the cabarets, both former world champions with different partners. In Joanna’s case, it was in the professional Latin American, and Victor claimed the world exhibition title with Hanna Karttunen. I know of Victor’s ability to perform wonderful lifts that sometimes are breathtaking. However, I am fascinated to see how Joanna has adapted to the exhibition style. From the commencement of their performance, I was immediately aware of Joanna’s ability to accommodate Victor’s powerful lifts. Her balance and fast spins as a Latin American dancer were well-known, and that was still apparent in her landings and spins in their routine. Their performance was justifiably rewarded with extended applause.
So, the final day of the 2024 Singapore Open came to a close. Congratulations to John & Josephine Tan on their organisation, which is backed by generous sponsors to ensure a first-class event with very attractive prize monies amounting to over US$33,000. I am sure plans are in the making for the 2025 Singapore Open. A huge thank you to the generous sponsors and supporters.
The Grand Finale of the Singapore Open
The Diamond Ball 2024
Patron: Regina Wong
Venue: The World-Famous Marina Bay Sands, Singapore
A grand evening dress ball in this fabulous hotel complex. A red-carpet cocktail reception welcomed us all. The ballroom and dining tables were so attractive, with atmospheric lighting accompanied by dry ice.
The guests were welcomed by hosts John & Josephine, who continued to make a speech of thanks to all supporters and competitors for their support.
Once again, the pro-am partnerships showed their prowess and, as usual, received a mountain of beautiful bouquets on completion of their dances.
Dinner was served, but it was difficult to enjoy the many courses or watch the shows. Happily, I enjoyed both.
All the champions of yesterday gave a great opening show with attractive choreography and music. This was followed by individual performances of yesterday’s amateur and professional champions. They were all excellent and were appreciated by the dining and wine-drinking audience, of which I was a part.
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