For those who love to dance but would like to try something a little more challenging, there is always ice dance. This is a form of figure skating that also incorporates some of the rules and moves of ballroom dancing into the mix for a little bit of an added challenge and a few more restrictions when it comes to moves and creative license than traditional figure skating allows.
Ice dancing also requires music that has a definitive beat or style of rhythm, which offers a few more restrictions than traditional figure skating. Ice dancing can be done for fun and enjoyment or as part of a competition. The competition is quite fierce among dominate skaters and world leaders in the field much like traditional figure skating.
Ice dancing is a beautiful and fluid form of dance that many consider to be even more graceful than either traditional ballroom dancing or traditional figure skating. The technical skills as well as the strength of each partner in this form of dance are extremely demanding and in order to become or remain competitive in this style of dance one must constantly work to home and improve one’s skills.
If you have never had the opportunity to watch ice dancing whether on tv or live, take the next available opportunity to do so. Whether you are thrilled by the dips, twirls, lifts, and flips you cannot deny the dedication to craft and sport that these skaters must endure in order to remain on top of their games.
Watching ice dancing on tv is a fun. However, watching ice dancing live is much more intriguing to many fans and spectators. There is an energy and oneness with the crowd that simply cannot be relayed through the tv screen. Being one of the spectators at a live ice dancing competition is almost as exciting as being at a live sporting event, well, of course that depends on the person watching.
Ice dance is a highly competitive sport. If you have a child that is interested or you are interested yourself be prepared to invest a great deal of time and money into any serious competitive efforts that you may have in your future. As you have probably gathered this is a partnered competition. You must have a partner in order to truly compete. This, for many is an added source of time and effort. Not all partners are immediate hits with one another and the chemistry is not always there. Plan to invest a good deal of time and effort into finding a good partner for your ice dance efforts if this is a sport you seriously wish to pursue. If you just want to participate as a spectator however, there is no partner required and a great deal of entertainment to be had.
photo credit: (Photo courtesy of Wikimedia commons; Ice dancing)
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