Winners: Fred Astaire World Championships

The Fred Astaire Dance Studios World Championships took place last week! Some of the best dancers in the world competed in a series of challenging ballroom dances, each with the goal of earning first place in their division. The championship took place at the beautiful Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the beauty of the surroundings was surpassed only by the beauty of the couples who took the floor for five straight days. The week was a visually stunning and exciting gathering, and each round held a new surprise.

 

A common theme between the winners was how much practice went into their success at the championship. Many of the division winners spoke to how often they were in the studio, and the average was between five to seven days a week! That kind of commitment yields results, and our winners worked hard to earn their trophies and medals. But this was where the similarities ended. Couples ranged in age, experience and length of time dancing together; it seems nothing can get in the way of a determined dancer. There were several couples, like Mischa and Galina, winners of the Open American Smooth Championship, or Heratin and Anastasia, winners of the Open International Standard Championship, who have been dancing – and winning – together for decades. On the other end of the spectrum were dancers who have been together less than 18 months, such as Charlene and Viktor, who won the Smooth Open Championship despite only having three months of practice together before the championship. There were dancers who began studying ballroom dance only a year ago, dancing next to professionals who had years of experience under their belts. The competition floor is the great equalizer, and it made all of our competitors shine. A full list of winners can be found below.

 

In between rounds, competitors got to see the sights around Las Vegas. The desert during the summer is simply stunning, and between casinos, theaters and botanical gardens, there is no shortage of places to visit. The marvels are simply never-ending. And the nightlife in Vegas is nothing to sneer at either! The dancers who still had any energy left took time to hotel-hop and view the legendary décor of the hotel lobbies all up and down the Las Vegas Strip. Of course, the Bellagio itself had plenty of ways to keep dancers occupied. Between the hotel’s nightclub, premier restaurant, botanical garden and spa, dancers didn’t even have to leave the hotel to get a well-rounded and relaxing taste of Vegas! After the competing ended, there were several professional shows mixed in with awards, to dazzle and inspire attendees. These pro shows capped off the weekend nicely!

 

The legendary Bellagio Hotel has seen many events like this one, and it will likely see many more. But this years’ FAWC was one for the books, thanks to the couples who came ready to give all they had in the name of dance. The unrivaled strength and skill we witnessed over the course of last week will not soon be forgotten. Thank you to everyone who came to compete, and to everyone who supported the championship or the dancers! We’re already looking forward to next year, and to the Fred Astaire National Championship in September!

 

Here are the 2016 winners!

 

Top Newcomer Students:

Top Male Newcomer:   Rafael Castro               Houston Woodlands  TX
Top Female Newcomer:   Barbara D’Avilar      Boyton Beach FL

 

Top Bronze Students:

Top Male Bronze Student:    John Swartz               Brandon  FL
Top Female Bronze Student:   Uda Shallop            Bloomfield Hills  MI

 

Top Silver Students:

Top Male Silver Student:     Michael Lahue           Montville   NJ
Top Female Silver Student:    Wini Kniejski           Greensboro  NC

Top Female Silver Student Wini Kniejski and Award Winning Teacher Sasha Tsyhankor

 

Top Gold Student:

Top Male Gold Student:     None
Top Female Gold Student:   Josie Lee         Redondo Beach    CA

 

Top Over All Amateur Couple and Junior Awards:

Top Over All Amateur Couple:  Ron Pipley & Martha Keller  Houston Memorial  TX
Top Over All Junior:  Ariane Southern           Brookfield WI

FAWC 2016: The winners circle – Day 3- pt 1

Posted by Fred Astaire Franchised Dance Studios Corporate on Wednesday, July 27, 2016

 

International Style 10 Dance Champions

Winner: Kharyton and Anastasiya Khomenko                   Madison West

 

American Style 9 Dance Champions

Winner:   Mykyta Serdyuk and Anna Krasnoshapka                    Madison West

 

Top Pro Ballroom Teacher Awards

5th Place:  Ruslan Meshkov                   Ft. Lauderdale

4th Place:  Kage Hart                               Ocean Side

3rd Place:  Tamerlan Gadirov                 Bloomfield Hills

2nd Place:  Calin Panainte                      New York East

1st Place:   Christian Lange                     Southbury

 

Top Pro Latin Teacher Awards

5th Place:  Christian Lange                     Southbury

4th Place:  Vova Cheberko                      Willoughby

3rd Place:  Iegor Likhachov                    South Barrington

2nd Place:  Masa Razic                            Belmont

1st Place:   Jonah Schneider                   Carmel

 

Top Pro Smooth Teacher Awards

5th Place:  Maria Gavrylova                     Palm Beach Gardens

4th Place:  Ben Seifert                              Houston Woodlands

3rd Place:  Sasha Tsyhankov                   Greensboro

2nd Place:  Fabian Sanchez                     Birmingham

1st Place:  Ilya Abdullin                            Princeton NJ

 

Top Pro Rhythm Teacher Awards

5th Place:  Hector Flores                      New York Midtown

4th Place:   Aaron DeSoto                    Chicago North

3rd Place:  Kelle Chancellor                 Brandon

2nd Place:  Vard Margaryan                Redondo Beach

1st Place:   Fabian Sanchez                  Birmingham

 

Top Over All Teacher Awards

5th Place   Sasha Tsyhankor               Greensboro

4th Place   Kelle Chancellor                Brandon

3rd Place   Vard Margaryan                Redondo Beach

2nd Place  Christian Lange                  Southbury

1st Place   Fabian Sanchez                  Birmingham

 

Top Studios Awards

Runner Up Studio:  Greensboro NC
Top Studio:   New York Midtown

 

Professional Divisions

Showcase: “Drumbone” Houston Woodlands

Closed Bronze/Silver Rhythm: Tamerlan Gadirov and Yuliya Sinevych Bloomfield Hills

Winners circle pt 2

Posted by Fred Astaire Franchised Dance Studios Corporate on Tuesday, July 26, 2016

Closed Bronze/Silver Smooth: Christian Lange and Talia Barrington Southbury

Showdance: Aaron and Iryna DeSoto  Chicago North

Closed Mixed Novice: Jhondarr Lopez and Karen Lopez Houston Woodlands

American Rising Star Smooth: John Campbell and Jaki Brockman New York West

American Rising Star Rhythm: Ryan Lockhart and Danelle Newman San Diego North

Professional Open Cabaret:  Misha Azarov and Tetyana Makarenko Destin

American Open Smooth: Mikhail and Galina Zharinov Miami Beach

Open International Latin: Hayk Balasanyan and Emilia Poghasyan Montville

American Open Rhythm: Ilya Velednitsky and Mariya Ilchenko Milwaukee Downtown

American Closed Novice: Dillion Heggie and Hannah Ringley Houston Woodlands

Open International Ballroom: Kharyton Khomenko and Anastasiya Khomenko Madison West

 

Championships (Pro-Am)

American Smooth Bronze Closed B Division: Anita Itzel and Andreas Luetzner West Palm Beach

American Smooth Bronze Closed C Division: Karen Scott and Vladimir Kosarev Coral Gables

American Smooth Bronze Closed A Division: Lori Rosenthal and Fabian Sanchez Birmingham

American Smooth Bronze Closed Amateur B Division: Ron Ripley and Martha Keller Houston Memorial

Bronze International Ballroom B Division: Anita Itzel and Andreas Luetzner West Palm Beach

Anita Itzel and Andreas Luetzner from West Palm Beach

Bronze International Ballroom C Division: Rhonda Liesenfelt and Ruslan Meshkov Ft Lauderdale

Silver International Ballroom B Division: Antoinette Bee and Ben Seifert River Oaks

Silver International Ballroom C Division: Linda Gill and Ruslan Meshkov Ft Lauderdale

International Ballroom Open Senior: Ingrid Totten and Elmar Schmidt Brookfield

Silver International Ballroom A Division: Antoinette Bee and Ben Seifert River Oaks

International Ballroom Open B Division: Motomi Kawamura and Calin Panainte New York East

International Ballroom Open A: Colleen Lee and Kage Hart Oceanside

International Ballroom Open C: Linda Gill and Ruslan Meshkov Ft Lauderdale

Bronze International Latin A Division: Antoinette Bee and Ben Seifert River Oaks

Bronze International Latin Junior Division: Jennifer Saad and Alain Sawaya Beirut

Bronze International Latin B Division: Vicki Barbera and Jonah Schneider Carmel

Bronze International Latin C Division: Pam Swerdlick and Plamen Danailov New York East

Open Smooth B Division:  Charlene Proctor and Viktor Tkachenko Bloomfield Hills

Fawc2016: Day 5- winners circle 2

Posted by Fred Astaire Franchised Dance Studios Corporate on Friday, July 29, 2016

Open Smooth C Division: Linda Gill and Ruslan Meshkov Ft Lauderdale

Open Smooth A Division: Alina Sakura and Adrian Dydynski Park Ridge

Open Smooth Amateur A Division: Frank Lacson and Jennifer Fan Rancho Bernardo

Open Smooth Junior Division: Ariane Southern and Slash Sharan Milwaukee Central

Open Smooth Senior Division: Elaine Waxman and Mikhail Zharinov Miami Beach

American Smooth Silver Closed B Division: Wini Kniejski and Sasha Tsyhankov Greensboro

American Smooth Silver Closed A Division: Anastasia Schulte and Kostadin Bidjourov Upper Montclair

American Smooth Silver Closed C Division: Elaine Waxman and Mikhail Zharinov Miami Beach

American Smooth Silver Closed Junior Division: Ariane Southern and Slash Sharan Milwaukee Central

American Smooth Gold Closed C Division: Ingrid Totten and Elmar Schmidt Brookfield

 

Scholarship (Pro-Am)

American Smooth Bronze Closed B Division: Anita Itzel and Andreas Luetzner West Palm Beach

American Smooth Bronze Closed C Division: Karen Scott and Vladimir Kosarev Coral Gables

American Smooth Bronze Closed A Division: Dewi Haliman and Adrian Dydynski Park Ridge

American Smooth Bronze Closed Amateur C Division: Bob and Wini Kniejski Greensboro

American Smooth Bronze Closed Amateur B Division: Dr David Sibley and Lori Rosenthal Birmingham

Bronze International Ballroom B Division: Anita Itzel and Andreas Luetzner West Palm Beach

Bronze International Ballroom A Division: Dewi Haliman and Adrian Dydynski Park Ridge

Bronze International Ballroom C Division: Rhonda Liesenfelt and Ruslan Meshkov Ft Lauderdale

Silver International Ballroom A Division: Antoinette Bee and Ben Seifert River Oaks

Silver International Ballroom B Division: Antoinette Bee and Ben Seifert River Oaks

Silver International Ballroom C Division: Linda Gill and Ruslan Meshkov Ft Lauderdale

International Ballroom Open Ballroom B Division: Debra Sutton and Sergey Barsukov St Petersburg Central

International Ballroom Open Ballroom A Division: Colleen Lee and Kage Hart Oceanside

International Ballroom Open Ballroom C Division: Linda Gill and Ruslan Meshkov Ft Lauderdale

Bronze International Latin A Division: Antoinette Bee and Ben Seifert River Oaks

Bronze International Latin Junior Division: Gabriella Avila and Jonah Schneider Carmel

Bronze International Latin B Division: Anita Itzel and Andreas Luetzner West Palm Beach

Bronze International Latin C Division: Murray Sackman and Masa Razic Belmont

Silver International Latin B Division: Vicki Barbera and Jonah Schneider Carmel

Open Latin Scholarship A Dvision: Erica Green and Vova Cheberko Willoughby

Open Latin Scholarship B Division: Lynn Magnesen and Tykhon Zhyvkov Redondo Beach

Open Smooth B Division:  Charlene Proctor and Viktor Tkachenko Bloomfield Hills

American Smooth Silver Closed B Division: Wini Kniejski and Sasha Tsyhankov Greensboro

American Smooth Silver Closed A Division: Alina Sakura and Adrian Dydynski Park Ridge

Open Smooth Amateur A Division: Frank Lacson and Jennifer Fan Rancho Bernardo

Open Smooth C Division: Linda Gill and Ruslan Meshkov Ft Lauderdale