By Anastasia and Bruno
On sunday 14th of January we had the first competition of 2024, and our first competition as a dance couple. Having met in late September 2023, we first had a try-out period. Since we both immediately felt comfortable together and we were a good match, we decided by the end of October to officially form a dancing couple and commence training for competitions. We had only completed our standard program by the end of 2023, even though we want to compete both in Latin and Standard. Michele and Herman suggested participating in the Standard category to gain competition experience,. Thus, the competition in Reeuwijk (NDO) was chosen as our baptism of fire.
On the day of the competition, we arrived in Reeuwijk around nine in the morning. At home, Anastasia had done her hair and applied makeup; also Bruno’s hair had been styled at home. There were many other couples from L2M, which was a very nice surprise.
We had decided to enroll in the Amateur competition (4 dances), and our first round was only at eleven. We were rather nervous, which was especially clear during the Quick Step in the first round, where we ‘lost each other’. The other three dances were going quite all right, given that this was our first competition. Since Michele and Herman were not coaching, we had agreed to send a video for possible feedback. Michele seemed quite happy (we think that was because it was our first competition ;-)), and with some tips we started the finals (we were directly placed for the final round, which really gave us a boost in confidence). We were less nervous during the finals, and the Quick Step was much better compared to the one in the first round. In the final ranking we got a third place (with even a second place for the tango). We were delighted with this outcome and are looking forward to the upcoming competitions.
All L2M teams were successfull in Reeuwijk, reaching the finals in their respective categories. Here are the results for each couple, all competing in their respective Standard category:
Amateur Masterclass
5th – Zende & Victoria
National amateurs
1th – Bert & Roxenne
3rd – Bruno & Anastasia
Senioren Masterclass 50+
1th – Evert & Margriet
4th – Richard & Els
5th – Dick & Anet
Senioren 50+
4th – John & Jose
Senioren Latin masterclass 50+
3rd – Evert & Margriet