Ballroom dance is a set of European partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world, mostly because of its performance and entertainment aspects. Ballroom dancing is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and television.
The World DanceSport Federation (WDSF), formerly the International DanceSport Federation (IDSF), is the international governing body of DanceSport and Para DanceSport, as recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).
Dancesport is competitive ballroom dancing, as contrasted to social or exhibition dancing. In the case of Para dancesport, at least one of the dancers is in a wheelchair.
The World Dance Council Ltd (WDC), is a registered limited company, the legal successor to the International Council of Ballroom Dancing, and was established at a meeting organized by Phillip J. S. Richardson on 22 September 1950 in Edinburgh, Scotland. From 1996 to 2006 the WDC was known as the World Dance & Dance Sport Council Ltd (WD&DSC). The stated mission of the World Dance Council is to inspire, stimulate and promote excellence in education for the World Dance Council and Amateur League community.
Formation dance is a style of ballroom dancing. It is pattern or shadow team dancing by couples in a formation team. The choreography may be based on a particular dance or a medley of dances. Formation dancing may be done for exhibition or for competition between teams. There is also a type of formation in Bhangra.
The Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD) is an international dance teaching and examination board based in London, England. The registered educational charity, which was established on 25 July 1904 as the Imperial Society of Dance Teachers, provides training and examinations in a range of dance styles and certified dance teacher courses. The ISTD is recognised by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority and the Council for Dance Education and Training and is also a member of the British Dance Council. It hosts various competitions in many different formats including Modern Ballroom, Latin American, Classical Ballet and Tap Dance as well as contemporary styles like Disco Freestyle.
This page lists the official World Champions – Professional Ballroom of the World Dance Council (WDC), and its historical predecessors. The championships are authorized and organized under the auspices of the WDC. The designation Ballroom replaces the previously used Modern or Standard in WDC terminology; it does not include the latin dances.
Paul Killick is a British professional ballroom dancer and an International Latin American Dance Champion. He appeared in the first two series of the television show Strictly Come Dancing. Killick specialize in Latin dance and has won The World Cup, World Trophy, World Masters, World Series, Universal and British Professional Latin American DanceSport Championships.
The Inter Varsity Dance Competition (IVDC) is an annual student dancesport competition organised by Inter Varsity Dance Association (IVDA). The IVDA write rules regarding entries, dress code and which dances will be part of the competition.
Swedish Dancesport Federation (DSF) administers all dancesport in Sweden. The association was formed on February 25, 1968, and is one of 68 different sports federations in Sweden. DSF became a member of the Swedish Sports Confederation (RF) in 1977, which administers all sports in Sweden. Apart from this membership Swedish Dancesport Federation also is a member of the International Dancesport Federation (IDSF) from June 19, 2011, known as the World DanceSport Federation (WDSF) and the World Rock'n'Roll Confederation (WRRC). The office lies in Farsta, Stockholm.
The 8-day Blackpool Dance Festival is the world's first and most famous annual ballroom dance competition of international significance, held in the Empress Ballroom at the Winter Gardens, Blackpool, England since 1920. It is also the largest ballroom competition: in 2013, 2953 couples from 60 countries took part in the festival.
The British Dance Council was formed in 1929 as the Official Board of Ballroom Dancing (OBBD). The name was changed in 1985 to the British Council of Ballroom Dancing and in 1996, the name was changed to British Dance Council. The BDC is the recognised governing body for Ballroom, Latin American, Sequence & Freestyle Disco dance in the United Kingdom.
The annual United States Dance Championships (USDC), previously called the United States Ballroom Championships (USBC) and the United States DanceSport Championships (USDSC), is recognized by the National Dance Council of America (NDCA) and the World Dance & DanceSport Council (WD&DSC) as determining the majority of the United States national professional ballroom dance champions.
Oxford University Dancesport Club (OUDC) is Oxford University's largest sports club and is the second largest club at the university after the Oxford Union. Founded in 1968 it currently has an annual membership of around 800 members. It runs professionally taught classes in the following dance styles:
The International Latin American Dance Championships were created after the Second World War in England by Elsa Wells, and are now organised by Dance News special events. The current full title is the Elsa Wells International Dance Championships, and includes all categories in Standard and Latin American ballroom dance.
The British Sequence Championships are ballroom dancing championships for adults and children held annually in Blackpool, England.
Cambridge Dancers' Club (CDC) first opened its doors in October 1950 as a student society in the University of Cambridge to promote Ballroom and Latin dancing. It has since broadened the styles taught by their professional teachers to include Salsa and Rock 'n' Roll classes, as well as opening to all adult Cambridge residents. The club runs classes five nights a week during Full Term, including classes open to people with no previous dance experience. Classes also run outside Full Term. Having once had an annual membership of over 2000, the club now has a membership that is still well over 1000 members, making it purportedly one of the largest Ballroom and Latin Dancing Clubs in Europe.
Rajeswari Vaidyanathan is a Tedx Speaker, trainer, performer and a choreographer of International Latin Ballroom Dance forms. She is the founder of a dance school called VR DanceSport, which is the largest Latin Ballroom dance school in India providing International level social and competitive training.
