THE JOY OF DANCE

BY LYNNE RIPPENAAR-MOSES

DANCESPORT is one of the most successful sports codes at UWC. Since 2007, the DanceSport Club has consistently been crowned the overall winners of the University Sports South Africa (USSA) DanceSport tournament.

HE CLUB ALSO RECEIVED THE TOP CLUB AWARD at the UWC Annual Sports Awards in 2007, 2010 and 2016.

One of the reasons for the club’s success is Cheslin Paris, the head coach of the club. Starting in 2006 when he was a fi rst-year law student, Paris began training dancers at UWC under the guidance of former UWC Director of Sport, Ilhaam Groenewald, and the Sports Administrator, the late Edwin Wyngaard. Paris is now responsible for the recruitment, selection and development of dancesport athletes at UWC. THE CLUB OFFERS competitive ballroom and Latin American disciplines. Members can learn dance styles such as the waltz, tango, Viennese waltz, slow foxtrot and the quickstep, as well as the Latin American styles – the samba, cha-cha, rumba, paso doble and jive. In competitive dancesport, couples compete against each other simultaneously and are placed in order of merit by a panel of adjudicators. Placings are calculated using the ‘skating system’. This system uses formulae based on majorities to determine a winner.

“I have been involved in this sport for 28 years. Even though I have retired from competitive dancing, I spend most of my days coaching, judging competitions and serving on dancesport administration boards,” says Paris, who holds multiple provincial and national championship titles and is also a qualifi ed judge and coach. As a student dancer between 2007 and 2010, he won 19 gold medals and one silver medal at the USSA Championships. PARIS SAYS dancing, like other sports, has physical, mental and social benefi ts.

“It improves cardiovascular health, flexibility, leads to increased energy, better coordination, strength and balance, and helps with weight loss,” explains Paris.

“It is good for mental health as it T can improve an individual’s mood, while moving and performing can ease depression and anxiety and help to minimise stress. It is also a good way to protect your memory function as you get older, because dancers must constantly remember routines and techniques. Individuals also develop social and soft skills, and self-confi dence.”

PARIS HAS PRODUCED hundreds of talented dancesport champions at UWC, including recently deceased Adrienne Galagatsi, who was the club’s sports administrator.

“Adrienne joined the dance club with the fi rst intake of dancers we enrolled in 2006. She developed her dancing to an advanced level, winning numerous medals and trophies for the club over the years. This earned her a spot in the UWC DanceSport Hall of Fame,” says Paris.

“Being a dancer herself, Adrienne understood the needs of a dancer. She went out of her way to ensure that no dancer was left behind – whether it be due to a lack of fi nances, transport, the ability to take leave from school or work or other obligations that prevented an athlete from participating in an event. She created job opportunities for dancers to earn some money to invest in their sport and to assist with their fi nancial obligations. She fought for dance to receive the same benefi ts afforded to other codes and for the club’s sporting achievements to be recognised,” explains Paris.

“IN THE PAST, DANCE WAS CONSIDERED A RECREATIONAL ACTIVITY. Now it has been elevated to the status of a sporting code with its own budget. The club will never be the same without her.

“In my years of teaching dance at UWC, hundreds of dancers came through the doors who had very successful dance careers and achieved academically. But very few progressed to building a career in dancing once they graduated. Unlike major sporting codes like rugby, cricket and soccer where sportspeople can build lucrative careers, dancing does not provide sustainable career opportunities. The sport is still heavily underfunded and companies and sponsors are not lining up to fund high-performing athletes and dance-related projects,” explains Paris.

MANY DANCERS are also expected to perform and work for “exposure” while other professional sportspeople are paid full salaries to play their sport. Paris says, “It thus makes sense that dancers explore other career opportunities after they graduate to ensure that they have sustainable careers when they leave the dance school.”

Dancing improves social and soft skills, including self-confidence.

CHESLIN PARIS

Anyone wishing to pursue a career in dance or join UWC’s DanceSport Club may contact Leah Brown on WhatsApp at 081 509 4845. Training sessions take place in the Dance Hall at the UWC Stadium on Mondays and Wednesdays at 16h30 for beginner classes and at 17h30 for advanced classes. B+G