March 2012
11 March 2012 was a day of remembrance for Japan and the rest of the world as it marked the first anniversary of the great eartquake and tsunami that had brought death and devastation to the country.
Exactly one year on, many of the same dancers who had been in Tokyo on the day the earthquake struck were able to bring back some normality through their performances in the 2012 GrandSlam.
In a silent prayer pior to the competions, the athletes and 5,000 spectators at the Tokyo Gymnasium remembered the victims.
The WDSF PD World Standard and the European Youth Ten Dance were danced in Moscow, RUS, on 17 and 18 March. WDSF Communications reported on both with live streams and extensive coverage from the Crocus Expo.
Another championship, the Europen Youth Latin scheduled for the 31 March at the same venue, had to be postponed. Russian governmental and sporting authorities cancelled the championship and officially informed WDSF by letter from the Committee of National and Non-Olympic Sports dated 28 March 2012. The committee advised that the Russian DanceSport Federation, which had its recognition suspended by the Ministry for Sports on 23 December 2011, failed to sign over the staging privileges to the championship.
Fortunately, WDSF was able to secure an alternate location and date for the 2012 European Youth Latin. The organisers of the German Open Championship – under the auspices of the German DanceSport Federation – staged the championship on 14 August 2012 in Stuttgart, GER.
Published on
