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Elizabeth holding her large trophy and smiling.

A trophy for Elizabeth

Elizabeth came 1st in her dance competition on Sunday in the intermediate 14 years and over category. This is the second intermediate competition she’s won and also the second competition she’s ever won. She never won any when she was in beginners and only ever managed one 2nd overall in novice. It’s a reflection of how much she’s improved over the last year and how hard she’s worked.

Elizabeth smiling and holding her large trophy.

At most competitions dancers will typically perform 7 or 8 dances where they get points for each one. The dancer with the highest points at the end gets 1st overall and there’s usually a 2nd and 3rd overall. Here’s how she placed in each individual dance:

Fling: 3rd
Swords: 2nd
Seann Triubhas: 1st
Reel: 1st
Barracks Johnny: 1st
Flora: 4th
Lilt: 1st

It was a tough lineup and they were all really strong dancers. For the first time ever Elizabeth also performed extended highcuts in both the sword dance and reel. Most intermediate dancers don’t do extended highcuts. They’re very difficult and usually done at the premier level. An extended highcut is a highcut – which is jumping on one leg while tapping the other foot twice on the back of the leg – but extending the leg first to make it an extended highcut. It’s probably easier just to watch. Here’s a video I found on YouTube of someone doing it. Go on, I dare you to try it! Note that you have to tap your foot twice on the back of the leg, not once and I take no responsibility for any injuries. You have to be strong and fit for highland dance.

Elizabeth will likely move up to premier towards the end of the year and that will be even more competitive but on the plus side dancers get money for placing in premier competitions often up to 6th place.

I only share her successes but she has had a lot of disappointments since she started competing back in 2022. There have been tears and also feelings of self-doubt in her ability but she’s pushed through it and when winning is hard to get it is all the more pleasant when you do get it. If it was easy there’d be little value in it.

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Rachel M

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Comments

One response to “A trophy for Elizabeth”

  1. Denise Avatar
    Denise

    This is fantastic news, well done! (Also to you as parents for all the travelling around and accompanying and supporting.)

    The extended highcuts look very hard, it looks as if you have to hold your body taut in place from the core (looks very disciplined and as it can’t be at all “floppy”) and also pull your legs into the right place with your core.

    Although none of us are competitive in our family, I think things like chess and dance competitions do foster a sense of self-reliance that become really clear once children become adults. When you are in the competition, you can only rely on yourself. (Although I would caveat that I wouldn’t count the experience of being taught badly by my mum how to play the piano and coming last in a couple of competitions, where I was informed by the judge that I was not playing musically.)

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