Dancers bring home international first place trophies
Talented dancers, Jada Croll and Caitlyn Nortje took first place recently at the Freestyle World Championships.
When Caitlyn Nortje and Jada Croll left the country recently to compete in the 2023 Freestyle World Championships in Blackpool, UK they did so with the hope that they would give their best on that dancefloor.
The dancing mavens placed first in the U16 championship freestyle pairs and have returned home with gold. Caitlyn also placed fifth in the freestyle and sixth in the slow dance competitions. Jada placed in the top nine for slow dance and in the top 20 in freestyle premier championships U16. Only 14 years old, she sees this as a big achievement for her.
In the lead-up to the competition, Jada’s fear was that her foot, which she injured earlier in the year, would give in. Getting onto that world stage, however, was a true accomplishment for her as she was dancing for her country. “I think I should have done better for slow dance because it’s one of my favourite dance styles. I had been working extra hard on slow dance because it takes more time to get the moves and choreography but, for freestyle I am happy.”
Prior to leaving for the competition, a goal for Fairland resident, Caitlyn, was to win a world title. It’s an ambition that she achieved by giving her best. Dance has taught her that she is capable of pushing herself to limits she thought were not possible through just her love and passion for dance.
Vice principal of Dancecorp, and the girls’ coach, Shannon Dunbar, said “To say that my girls exceeded my expectations is an understatement. We went in aiming just to make the final as the competition is incredibly fierce on a world platform.” She added that after many hours of intense training, workshops, literal blood, sweat and tears, they did it. “Not only did they make their final, but Jada and Caitlyn are the U16 world champions.”
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