In bomb shelter and to sounds of air-raid siren: how Ukrainian national team prepared for dance competition in Portugal

The Ukrainian national team took 14th place at the Dance World Cup 2023 international dance competition, which was held this year in the city of Braga, Portugal. The competition lasted from 30 June to 8 July, Yuliia Denysova, the director and producer of the national team, said in an interview with Ukrainska Pravda.Zhyttia. National teams from 57 countries took part in the competition.

The Ukrainian team included 51 children over the age of 10. In total, during the competition, the Ukrainians presented 72 performances and took 14th place in the team competition.

Quote: "One girl received a special prize - free education at an academy in the United Kingdom. In separate nominations, we have gold, silver and bronze.

We lost to the compelling teams of the UK, Germany and Israel. We were told that it is for debutants in the competition because for me, it is my first job, and it's an excellent result," Yuliia Denysova said. Preparations for the competition have lasted since October last year.

"We trained during air-raid sirens in bomb shelters, without light and under a flashlight," Yuliia recalls.

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She added that the contest venue changes every year, and in 2024, according to the schedule, it should be held in Kyiv, but for security reasons, it will be held in Prague.

According to Yulia, the plan for next year is to involve Ukrainian composers in the numbers so that the performances will be set to Ukrainian music.

Background: The Ukrainian illustrator won the gold medal at the International Poster Biennale.

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