All right, so you’ve found your way here, and you say, “Dance Sport?! You’ve got to be kidding me!”
I most certainly am not. Competitive Ballroom Dancing, officially known as DanceSport is just that-- a sport. Just ask the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the governing body that determines which sports are to be held in the Olympic Games, as well as where the Games are to be held.
On September 4, 1997, the IOC officially recognized DanceSport as a member of the IOC and the International Dancesport Federation (IDSF) as its official governing body. This is one of the first steps towards actually being included in the Games, which the DanceSport community is planning on happening by the Games of 2008.
Not convinced by that? Okay, then how about some math? Let’s begin with the fact that a medical study states that one round (approximately 100 seconds) of competitive Ballroom Dancing is as strenuous as a 40-yard dash (this was quoted in Sports Illustrated Magazine, September or October, 1996). Now we’ll look at a typical competition for a collegiate dancer, such as I was myself.
Depending on how adventurous I was feeling, I competed in between six
and ten main dances per competition. Let’s use ten. Now, like
a track meet, a large field of competitors is whittled down in successive
elimination heats until the final, when they compete for placement.
On the average, there will be three elimination rounds and a final.
Most dancers compete in two ability levels-- their own, and the one above.
Add to this an average four “Open Dances” which are open to anyone, with
the same number of rounds. Let’s do the math.
