• Aloha circle Aloha circle
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For those of you not familiar with Hawaii, Aloha, in Hawaiian means “hello” as well as “goodbye” and so it is very appropriate for everyone to hold hands in the form of a “lei” and sing this song as we have all done since the Hawaii Star Ball was conceived.

• Yegor Novikov & Alexandra Smirnova Yegor Novikov & Alexandra Smirnova
• Nick Cheremukhin & Viktorija Nick Cheremukhin & Viktorija
• Open Pro Smooth Open Pro Smooth
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The evening had some terrific dancing especially in the Professional Smooth where two big names from our US final took to the floor, Nick Cheremukhin & Viktorija our current United States Professional Smooth Champions, who placed first at this Hawaii Star Ball and Yegor Novikov & Alexandra Smirnova, US National finalists, who took second. In our opinion, Yegor & Alexandra danced extremely well and could have easily won the foxtrot. The third competitor in this heat held their own and they were, John Holzworth & Nicole Wooding, we have to tip our hats to this couple who looked excellent and even though they took third this time, gave an excellent showing.

• Open Pro Latin Open Pro Latin
• Francesco & Sabrina Bertini Francesco & Sabrina Bertini
• Tykhon & Yana Zhyvkov Tykhon & Yana Zhyvkov
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The Professional Latin was also great and here the win went to Francesco & Sabrina Bertini who just the night before also won the Cabaret. Second in this heat and doing an excellent job, were Tykhon & Yana Zhyvko. On this night we felt they did a terrific job especially in the cha cha, totally in the right direction for this couple in future outings. And last in this excellent heat was awarded to Zsolt Katona & Timea Potys.

• Senior II Ballroom Senior II Ballroom
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There were some other competitions going on this evening in the senior categories but one needing to be mentioned is the Senior 2 Ballroom competition, where five interesting and motivated couples took to the floor. In the end a well deserved win went to Thomas Yu & Yuko Naululani Yu. Second in this heat was awarded to Juan & Janice Vasquez, leaving third to Antony & Marina Sanches-Torres. Song Kim & Nicole Suh were fourth, Calvin & Debra Ota placed fifth.

• Shinsuke Kanemitsu & Anna Kovalova Shinsuke Kanemitsu & Anna Kovalova
• Shinsuke Kanemitsu & Anna Kovalova Shinsuke Kanemitsu & Anna Kovalova
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There was a special show by Ana Kovalova former US Professional Latin finalist dancing this time with Shinsuke from Japan. This must have been quite a draw for the Japanese audience.

Our congratulations to David Alvarez and his partner in crime Mr. John Fishpaw for a very successful Hawai’i Star Ball.

Day 2 of the Hawaii Experience!

Yesterday was day two of the Hawaii experience, and with the Rhythm style being run this day, it was a packed day with no awards just a few breaks to give everyone some breathing room.

• The band The band
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After a well-deserved rest for all the competitors in the late afternoon, the evening festivities started first with a dinner dance to a full band, and as always this was enjoyed by many, here in the Star Ball where people come to relax, party and enjoy.

There were three major events here last night at the Hawaii Star Ball, the Open Professional Ballroom where 2 couples took to the floor, the Open Professional Rhythm and here three couples were present, and the Professional Cabaret.

• Open Pro Rhythm Open Pro Rhythm
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The Open Professional Rhythm had the most excitement and this competition was won easily by Danas Jaksevcius & Yuki Haraguchi. They gave an excellent performance totally of the caliber of the US finalist they are. Second in this Rhythm heat went to Anton Tregubov & Ashley Sanchez from Florida, like us in Dance Beat they must also love the sunshine. And third went to Zsolt Katona & Timea Potys.

• Open Pro Ballroom Open Pro Ballroom
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In the Open Professional Ballroom there were only two couples and second by placing first in the waltzes but second in the other three dances went to the current US Smooth Champions Nick Cheremukhin & Viktorija. First in this first heat went to Evgeniy Mayorov & Olga Lisovskaya.

• Open Professional Cabaret Open Professional Cabaret
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The Cabaret for us was the most interesting competition, there were four couples entered and here the first to go was Francesco & Sabrina Berti, who did a paso doble themed showdance, and this was well welcomed by the audience and since they won we presume the majority of the judges. Francesco & Sabrina’s paso was excellent but we tended to go for the unusual routine by Yegor Novikov & Alexandra Smirnova, who did a “cha cha” Smooth medley with an excellent piece of music totally out of the box and we applaud their efforts. Yegor & Alexandra’s routine was not only unique in from but very musical showcasing this couple’s possibilities.

Third place went to Tykhon & Yana Zhyvkov, who did a rumba and in fourth place was Anton Tregunov & Ashley Sanchez who did basically their usual mambo in a different dress. The last two routines mentioned did not really challenge the couples beyond their comfort zones, whereas in the first two where you could tell the couples really tried to do something interesting and perhaps new.

• Robert Holsen & Yumi Hi Robert Holsen & Yumi Hi
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We also have to tip our hat to Hawaii for their solo performances. Ashton Von Blanton and William Landers, both with Yanna Samkova, did an excellent job with their solo routines. Also Robert Holsen & Yumi Hi for their cabaret performance.

Congratulations to the organizers for an excellent job at this year’s Hawaii Star Ball.

Hawaiian Paradise!

Once again we’re here for the Hawaii Star in the sparkling Hawaiian Islands.

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The venue is once again the spectacular Sheraton Waikiki, ocean-side in Honolulu. With large convention facilities and stunning views of Diamond Head and the ocean, this is always a spectacular venue.

• The luau The luau
• The luau The luau
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Organizers, David Alvarez & John Fishpaw, once again began the festivities with the traditional Luau by the pool on Wednesday, complete with Hawaiian dancers and musicians and the traditional island food. This is a great way to get into the spirit of Aloha!

• In the ballroom In the ballroom
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Yesterday was a full day of pro-am dancing beginning at 8AM with the Smooth heats and ending at night with all the Latin divisions.

Today is even more full – this time with the nightclub and rhythm divisions and tonight we move on to professional and amateur divisions. Stay tuned for the results and more happenings.