By Bruno & Anastasia
The past six months have been an incredibly exciting period for us. After the summer holidays, we received the news that we had been selected to represent the Netherlands at the World Championships Ballroom Youth in Poland in October and the European Championships in Bulgaria in December. The level of competition was extremely high, and we thoroughly enjoyed dancing alongside such exceptional couples. We learned a great deal—about presenting ourselves, finding our place on the floor, and moving much bigger than we were used to.
With those lessons in mind (and Herman’s wise words the day before the competition in Zwolle: “MOOOOOVVVVVV!”), we were eager to compete in the NADB A Standard competition and the Latin Hoofdklasse in Zwolle on February 1st. We left early in the morning and arrived around 9 o’clock. After warming up, we had our general look at 10:15. We were very happy that Michele was there to give us some last-minute advice—more steady shoulder line, head movements—before the final began. We truly enjoyed dancing this final. We felt that we managed to incorporate all the tips from Herman and Michele, and that we danced well (although there is always room for improvement). The judges apparently agreed: we finished 1st in this category with five first places.
In the afternoon, we participated for the first time in the Latin Hoofdklasse. The field was very strong, with several couples who have been dancing in this category for a long time. Again, we had a general look and a final. During the general look our energy (and confidence, as Michele pointed out) was not high enough. Keeping this in mind, we put all our energy and determination into the final. It clearly paid off—we achieved 3rd place, the highest result that was realistically within reach at this moment.
We are very happy that we danced our best dances at the competition in Zwolle, as this turned out to be our last competition together. Due to personal circumstances, Anastasia has decided to take a break from competitions. We are infinitely grateful for the wonderful time we had, exploring the limits of what we could achieve during the two years we danced together. We are sure we will stay close friends and continue to see each other, whether at competitions—where Anastasia has already promised to cheer from the sidelines—or outside the dance floor.
We would also like to thank Herman and Michèle for their excellent lessons and coaching, and the entire L2M team for their support and the many great conversations during Saturday lessons and the competitions we shared.