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1992 WORLD STANDARD DANCESPORT CHAMPIONSHIPS
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Saturday, 4 April 1992 was
a very special day for all members of ADSA - The Amateur Dance Sport Association
(Singapore). Not only did Singapore become the first country in Asia to
host the World Amateur Standard Dancesport Championship, we broke three
records doing it.
Organising the World Championships
was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. |
For the first time in the
history of any World Championship, a record number of 65 couples took part.
It was also the first time that 39 countries were represented, breaking
another record. Some 4,000 spectators witnessed the crowning of the World
Champions that night, making it the largest number of spectators in any
dancesport event in South-East Asia to-date.
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ADSA first bid for the World
Championship in 1991 at the IDSF Annual General Meeting in Germany.
Initially, the IDSF Presidium was reluctant to grant ADSA the rights as
they did not know much about Singapore. However, with the Singapore Tourist
Promotion Board and the impressive Singapore Indoor Stadium behind us,
ADSA delegates finally convinced the Presidium that Singapore is a unique
venue for the prestigious World Standard Championship.
Much work went into the preparation
for the event. ADSA left no stone unturned to ensure the success of the
World Championship. The best local hotels and the world's premier airline
-Singapore Airlines were roped in to guarantee all the overseas guests
a pleasant trip to and stay in Singapore. Highway Sound Light Engineering
was brought in to provide the sophisticated sound and lighting requirements
which only the best professionals can provide. The Red Cross Society provided
medical coverage and Youth Challenge gave us help with manpower.
To create a visually stunning
Official Opening Ceremony, ADSA approached Haw Par Villa to release the
world s largest Flying Dragon. Together with the Combined Schools Lion
Dancers and Singapore Girls leading the march past of competitors, the
Opening Ceremony was both colourful and exciting and left the many overseas
visitors with an impression of Singapore they would never forget. |
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To create a visually stunning
Official Opening Ceremony, ADSA approached Haw Par Villa to release the
world s largest Flying Dragon. Together with the Combined Schools Lion
Dancers and Singapore Girls leading the march past of competitors, the
Opening Ceremony was both colourful and exciting and left the many overseas
visitors with an impression of Singapore they would never forget.
All too soon, the exciting
evening ended. Everyone was happy. The Defending Champions, Kim Rygel and
Cecilie Brinck won the Championships for the second year running. That
same evening they announced that they were turning professionals. It was
a moving moment for all who attended the World Championship.
So, Singapore had her “premiere”,
and the IDSF was thrilled. ADSA's dream had come true. At the farewell
dinner hosted by the IDSF at the world famous Raffles Hotel, IDSF President
Detlef Hegemann assured that more World and International Championships
would be organised in Asia in future. What wonderful news!
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