Dancers to fly the flag at Six Nations
Beatz Elite off to Wales for Championships
A street dance team from Whitburn are travelling to Wales this weekend to represent Scotland in the UDO Six Nations Street Dance Championships.
Beatz Elite will be taking part in the event which is being held in the North Wales town of Prestatyn, and will see top teams from England, France, Ireland, Poland and Scotland as well as the host nation compete in a variety of categories.
The club were set up just three years ago by coaches Lynn Paterson and Lindsey Scobie and this weekend marks the first time they have travelled away for a competition and Lynn is confident the members will make the most of the opportunity.
She said: “It’s the first time we have qualified for an event like this where we’ve made a weekend of it and travelled away.
“We made the Wor l d Championships a couple of years ago but that was in Glasgow so this will be a new experience for everyone and we’re all looking forward to it.”
Lynn says that, while a trophy and qualification for the World Championship is the ultimate aim, she just wants everyone to enjoy themselves.
She commented: “We go down there purely looking to have fun and there’s no pressure at all.
“I think if we put ourselves under pressure we wouldn’t be able to perform at our best.
“The whole idea of the club is just to have fun and enjoy yourselves and that isn’t going to change for an event like this. Of course, you go into tournaments hoping to win and get high places and that’s what we’d love to do.
“If we perform well, we will qualify for the World Championships again so that would be terrific, but as long as everyone enjoys the experience, that’s all we’re after.”
She added: “We’re taking a team of 12 and the ages range from 13 to 36 so we’re quite a diverse group but everyone gets on really well.
“Some of the older members came back just to enjoy themselves and get back into dancing and never really thought that they would be involved in competitions like this but it’s a great opportunity for them to show how good they are.
“For them to be coming back into dancing and then taking part in events the size of the Six Nations is a great achievement.”
The Courier will be catching up with the team next week to give you a full report on how they get on in Wales.