75th Blackpool DanceSport Festival: May 26th - June 2nd, 2000

"DEAR DIARY"...Adventures in Blackpool!

Friday, June 2nd, 2000

Tonight was the last session of 75th British Open Blackpool Championships -- and what a memorable night!!! From the first round to the quarter-finals, then to the semi's and the finals, there was plenty of exciting dancing from competitors from around the world. Highlights of the evening included Tony Dokman (with partner Amanda Owen), who broke with tradition and wore a beige men's suit with white shirt and gold silk tie throughout the competition, instead of the traditional black tailsuit and bowtie, etc. Although controversial among traditionalists, it caused a stir among the Blackpool audience and dancesport community -- it was one of those situations where you either loved it, or disapproved of it, but Tony had to be admired for taking a stand on what he believed to be the attempt to modernise modern/standard dancesport. Just as Joanne Bolton (with Timothy Howsen) broke with tradition and introduced the "pant suit" costume last year, Tony has done the same with men's costume.

The Latin Formation event consisted of a semi-final and final. Unlike other events, only four of the seven entries were called back to the finals:

Latin Formation Results:
1. South of England Latin Team, trained by Lesley Dodd & Michael Stylianos
2. Idaho DanceSport Academy Latin Team, trained by Shawn Fisher
3. Utah Valley State College Latin Team, trained by Scott Asbell & Corky Ballas
4. TDE Manchester Formation Team, trained by Darren Hulme

Before the announcements of the semi-finalists of the Professional Standard/Modern Championships, Bill Irvine introduced the champions of the past, who were in attendance that evening: 1959-1961- Harry Smith-Hampshire & Doreen Casey; 1962-1964/1966- Bill & Bobbie Irvine; 1965/67/68- Peter Eggleton; 1969-72- Anthony & Faye Hurley; 1973-1978, 1980-81- Richard & Janet Gleave [For those of you new to the dance world, Richard & Janet used to be married; Richard is now married to Anne Lewis. It was wonderful to see Richard give a kiss of affection to Janet and they both seemed to have moved on with their lives and were happy.); 1979/82/85- Michael & Vickie Barr; 1986-88- Stephen Hillier & Lindsay Tate [As some of you may know, Stephen used to be married to Lindsay. As they were introduced, they seemed to avoid holding hands and walked a far distance from each other while acknowledging the crowd and then joined the others in the lineup. We subsequently learned that Lindsay was very gracious and had wanted to participate amicably with Stephen, but was put in an awkward position. However, she maintained her composure with class and smiled to the audience. She continues to be a respected coach/judge (she has been one of the key creative forces behind "Burn the Floor", the ballroom spectacular that has been touring around the world.) and is loved by her many fans and students around the world; 1989/91/93- John Wood & Anne Lewis [John & Anne were briefly married once, but Anne is now with Richard Gleave. They held hands and greeted the applauding crowd with warm smiles, having both moved on with their lives.]; 1990/92/94-98- Marcus & Karen Hilton, MBE. These past champions then held hands and ran from the stage to the audience at the front edge of the floor, and then to the audience at the sides of the floor. The only exception was Stephen Hillier who remained near the front of the stage. Finally, they all marched off the floor to a wonderful and deserving standing ovation.

The quarterfinal and semifinal were exciting, with established and new professionals putting more than 100% effort into their dancing and wanting to make the finals. It must have been a very difficult decision for the judges to pick six teams for the finals, as everyone was dancing at their best. There were changes in costumes by many of the ladies (e.g., Hazel Newberry, Joanne Bolton, Alessia Manfredini, Simona Fancello, Loraine Baricchi, Caterina Arzenton, Malene Van Hauen, etc.).

The final was magical with everyone now having room to dance their best. Highlights included Alan & Donna Shingler who made their first final in the Foxtrot. New professionals, William Pino & Alessandra Bucciarelli, made their first final in the Tango. All the other finalists came up and congratulated them. Loraine & Luca Baricchi looked calm, steady, and mature as the defending champions. Augusto Schiavo & Caterina Arzenton, who had challenged Loraine/Luca during the Team match last week (i.e., deliberately following and blocking, etc.), focused on their own dancing tonight and were wonderful to watch. As some of our readers may know, Augusto & Caterina had been romantically involved at one time, and although no longer the case, they are also one of those couples who have moved on and as dance partners, continue to excel in spite of the challenges to now become the number two couple in the world.

As the audience waited for the announcement of the final results of the Professional Standard/Modern results, Marcus Hilton led, what is usually done at baseball or football matches -- the "wave". It was quite a sight to see people in tuxedos and evening gowns standing up and waving their arms up in the air around the ballroom, from the ground level up to the highest balcony. The Irving Tidswell Band (which played live music throughout the event) also participated, and added to the fun by ocasionally stopping the wave -- to which the audience boo'ed.

Finally, the results were announced:

Professional Standard/Modern Results:
Overall Winners: Luca & Loraine Baricchi
[Luca & Loraine received first place overall in all dances.]

Waltz:
1. Luca & Lorraine Baricchi, England
2. Augusto Schiavo & Caterina Arzenton, Italy
3. Christopher Hawkins & Hazel Newberry, England
4. Massimo Giorgianni & Alessia Manfredini, Italy
5. Timothy Howsen & Joanne Bolton, England
6. Fabio Selmi & Simona Fancello, Italy

Foxtrot:
1. Luca & Lorraine Baricchi, England
2. Augusto Schiavo & Caterina Arzenton, Italy
3. Christopher Hawkins & Hazel Newberry, England
4. Massimo Giorgianni & Alessia Manfredini, Italy
5. Timothy Howsen & Joanne Bolton, England
6. Alan & Donna Shingler, England

Tango:
1. Luca & Lorraine Baricchi, England
2. Augusto Schiavo & Caterina Arzenton, Italy
3. Massimo Giorgianni & Alessia Manfredini, Italy
4. Christopher Hawkins & Hazel Newberry, England
5. Fabio Selmi & Simona Fancello, Italy
6. William Pino & Alessandra Bucciarelli, Itlay

Quickstep:
1. Luca & Lorraine Baricchi, England
2. Augusto Schiavo & Caterina Arzenton, Italy
3. Christopher Hawkins & Hazel Newberry, England
4. Massimo Giorgianni & Alessia Manfredini, Italy
5. Fabio Selmi & Simona Fancello, Italy
6. Timothy Howsen & Joanne Bolton, England

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