RSS
Go Feis - The Irish Dance Blog


Home Page > Blogs > Irish Dance blogs > Go Feis - The Irish Dance Blog > First-time regional Irish dance champions - PHOTOS
kathleen-oreilly-wild_D9D8FF

Go Feis - The Irish Dance Blog

by Kathleen O’Reilly-Wild

First-time regional Irish dance champions - PHOTOS

Posted on Wednesday, February 01, 2012 at 02:41 PM
print this article Print
email this articleE-mail
comment on article Make a comment
See more: irish dance  

RSS


Recent Posts

Archives

submit to reddit

2011 New England Regional Irish Dancing Champion
Girls under 9 Jillian Collins (pink) hugs Brigitte Reid.
Photo by Dana Sulger

There may be nothing so exciting than watching a brand new regional Irish dancing champion realize that he or she is the last one standing during awards.  Those emotional moments before the dancer receives the championship sash and climbs to the coveted top spot on the podium are priceless!  Captured by professional event photographers and hundreds of amateurs clicking away, the images serve to remind us of the joy that comes with hard work and the love of Irish dance.
---------------------

 

Ellie King, Girls under 11
2011 Southern Regional Irish Dancing Champion.
Photo: Shamrock Photo

 

 
Charlotte Sulger, Girls under 9
2011 New England Regional Irish Dancing Champion.
Photo: Dana Sulger.


For all regional championships in North America, the Top Ten are usually introduced at the beginning of each group's awards.  Ten competitor numbers are called on-stage, and the excitement mounts to know how the ten placements will fall.  Then, the Top Ten move to the back or side of the stage while awards are presented to the top 50% of the dancers in each competition, in reverse order.  As the placements get closer to the top performers, those who have qualified for the North American National Irish Dancing Championships are called out as well.  Finally, the Top Ten return to the front of the stage.  Heads are bowed, and a view from behind would often show rivals holding hands while waiting results. 
 

Hattie Rose Hare, Girls under 10
2011 Southern Regional Irish Dancing Champion.
Photo: Shamrock Photo
---------------------
For all but the youngest age groups, these dancers have also qualified for the World Irish Dancing Championships.  The emcee calls out, "In Tenth Place..." and the competitor number, full name and dance school are announced to great applause.  One by one, the placements are taken until the Top Five are left.


Alexis Farnsworth, Girls under 11
2011 Western United States Regional Irish Dancing Champion.
Photo courtesy Acadamh Rince.
Eric Crone, Boys under 9
2011 Western United States Regional Irish Dancing Champion.
Photo courtesy Tir Conaill (Arizona).

Sisters Deirdre and Maeve Smith, Girls under 12 and under 8
2011 Western United States Regional Irish Dancing Champions.
Photo courtesy Olivia Griffin.

There are usually great embraces and stoic handshakes among the finalists between announcements and the group left standing grows closer together and smaller still, some dearest friends and dance classmates. Occasionally a finalist is seen checking his or her competitor number to make sure it wasn't yet called... and then, there is the moment when the Second Place winner is announced and the crowd goes wild as the new or defending regional champion is announced.  The dancer's teachers approach the podium and it is remarkable in all the excitement that they make a point of shaking the hands of the other top dancers before moving to the center to congratulate their champion.


Martin Bradshaw, Boys under 15
2011 New England Regional Irish Dancing Champion.
Photo: Photography by Harrington

It's a Tie! Boys under 8 Co-Champions Peter Mildrew and Davin Poe
2011 Southern Regional Irish Dancing Champs.
Photo: Shamrock Photo

These celebratory moments are the impetus behind some of our favorite photographers' best work.  Special thanks to official event photographers Tom Gregory of Shamrock Photo and Scott Harrington for sharing their images with us.  Visit their sites to purchase and enjoy!
 

See more: irish dance, irish culture, Irish dancing competitions



print this article Print
email this articleE-mail

Comment

Be the first to make a comment.





Connect to IrishCentral with your Facebook account

or Sign-Up directly

Already Registered? Sign-In!

Welcome to IrishCentral!
Please provide the following information in order to create your account

Username:
E-Mail Address:
Password:
Confirm Password:
I agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy


Already Registered? Sign-In!
Forgot my password

Welcome to IrishCentral!
All we need is the following information and you will be part of the #1 Irish community in the US

E-Mail Address:
First select a unique username:
Username:
Now choose a password:
Password:
Confirm Password:
I agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy
Thank you!

Just one more step and you will be part of the largest Irish community in America! Tell us a little more about you to start enjoying all the features of IrishCentral.

Additional Information:

First Name:
Last Name:
Date of Birth:
Zip:
Gender: Male  Female 
Country:
Degree of Irishness:
Household Income:
Level of Education:

Subscribe to our newsletters:

The Best of IrishCentral - Daily Newsletter
Special Offers from our sponsors

or
Skip

You can edit your information at any time, just go to "my account" when you're logged in.

Log into IrishCentral with your Facebook account

or sign-in directly

E-Mail:
Password:
 Remember me Forgot my password
Not a member? Register Now!
submit to reddit
print this article Print
email this articleE-mail