Dusan Dragovic and Valeria Dragovic, from Russia, perform during the opening ceremony. Photos by Sun Yuchen unless otherwise stated

Peng Jia’nan and Zhong Jiaci, from Beijing, secure the championship title in the professional modern dance category. Courtesy of Gang Long Dance

Long Yongkun and Cheng Jiani, from Sichuan, claim the championship title in the amateur Latin dance category. Courtesy of Gang Long Dance

Zhang Chanwen

1215820631@qq.com

THE 2024 Gang Long Dance Championships (GLDC) Grand Final, alongside the 12th Shenzhen Ballroom (Sport Dance) Championship, is being held from Dec. 7 to 14 at the Luohu Gymnasium. The event has brought together over 6,000 elite dancers from nearly 30 provinces and regions across China to compete for annual championship titles in various categories.

Modern and Latin dancers dazzled in vibrant professional costumes during the opening ceremony of the 2024 GLDC Grand Final on Tuesday evening. The highlight of the event was a captivating performance by world-renowned professional Russian dance duos Kirill Belorukov and Valeria Aidgey (Latin) and Dusan Dragovic and Valeria Dragovic (modern), who enthralled the audience with a series of dances, including the cha-cha, jive, rumba, paso, gallop, waltz, tango, and foxtrot.

The competition caters to participants ranging in age from 3 to 70, encompassing both professional and amateur dancers. Competitors in the top-tier 700 categories, which include both modern and Latin dance for professionals and amateurs, competed for prestigious championship titles.

Peng Jia’nan and Zhong Jiaci, from Beijing, emerged victorious again in the professional modern dance category, while Long Yongkun and Cheng Jiani, from Sichuan Province, claimed the top spot in the amateur Latin dance category.

The organizing committee invited more than 130 judges, including international experts from the U.K., Italy, the U.S., and Russia, as well as Chinese judges.

Shenzhen Daily photographer Sun Yuchen captured some of the championship’s most exciting moments.