• By Fredric Frennessen
University of Surrey Dance Team

This is the 2nd year Fredric & Vicki have had the honour of coaching the University of Surrey dance team.

Back in September when the fresher’s joined the university, many of our members had never taken a dance step before. It must be said that the students have come a long way in such a short time.

With only one competition under their belt, the preparation for Blackpool had been very tight. Nevertheless, this was an occasion no one wanted to miss and everyone was very excited at the prospect of competing at this event.

A minibus had been allocated by Alex, the team president. All onboard and the journey started from the Guildford campus by lunch time on the Friday.

For many of these students, this was the first time they had entered the fabulous Empress ballroom in Blackpool. To compete here, arguably the most famous ballroom in the world is surely something to cherish for the future.

Compared to Oxford and Cambridge arriving in chartered busses, Surrey UNI had a fairly modest ensemble. This didn’t cause any upset. Our dancers took on the challenge in true Olympic spirit, where the importance to win is of lesser significance than to take part.

The competition started in the early hours of the Saturday morning and didn’t end until close to midnight. After a whole day and evening all the competitors from Surrey were very tired, having been on their feet all day

Vicki & Fredric looked on and supported the team throughout the day. They were very pleased with the performance from the dancers, considering many of them had only started dancing in September last year.

When asked the question if she enjoyed dancing and competing, Liz said – I absolutely love it! It is fair to say that the dance bug has bitten again.

Click here for photos of IVDC 2010

Click here for video clips of the competition: IVDC 2010