Held during the CPA World Cup, but a separate championship run by a different organiser (WDC / FDSARR). Entry is by open online registration on the championship's own site, chinadance.org — separate from CPA World Cup registration.
Download the original regulations
The WDC AL World Championship Showdance is held in two disciplines: Showdance Ballroom and Showdance Latin. Results are summarised separately for each discipline.
The championship is held with the support of the World Dance Council (WDC), the World Federation of Acrobatic Dances and Dance Sports (WFADS), and XinJue (Shanghai) Education Technology Co., Ltd.
Guangde City Grand Theater
Address: No. 12-21 South Wanguishan Road, Guangde, Xuancheng, Anhui, China.
广德市万桂山南路12-21号
All amateur couples who meet the eligibility criteria and have registered may take part in the World Championship.
Adult age group: 19 years or older on the day of the competition. Only one of the partners needs to meet this age requirement.
Youth couples aged 16 to 18 may be allowed to compete one age group above their own, at the discretion of the organiser.
A couple may represent a country if one of the partners holds a valid passport of that country both at the time of registration and at the time of the competition.
The entry fee is $70 (US dollars) per couple.
Admission for spectators is free of charge.
Participants shall send the following to the organiser at kovaleva.e@fdsarr.ru at least 7 days before the competition:
the names and surnames of the athletes, the country they represent, the title of the performance, and a list of the dances performed;
video content, if available, in mp4 format;
the music track in mp3 format.
The competition is made up of qualifying rounds and a final. The results are worked out using the Skating System.
Performances in Showdance Ballroom and Showdance Latin are rotated to increase the entertainment value of the competition.
The results of the competition are summarised separately for each discipline.
The order in which couples perform is decided by ballot, which competitors have the right to attend.
The running order is displayed on the information board.
The Master of Ceremonies announces the couple's starting number, the country and the title of the performance.
A rehearsal is held before the start of the competition. It is attended by the Chairman, the Organiser's representative, the sound engineer, the video operator, the lighting director and the Scrutineer.
The organiser notifies the athletes of the time and place of the rehearsal at least 24 hours before the start of the competition.
Athletes shall arrive at the rehearsal at least 15 minutes before its start. The presence of other persons at the rehearsal is not allowed.
Each rehearsal lasts no more than 15 minutes. During the rehearsal the couple performs the whole show, including entering and leaving the dance floor.
The break between the end of the rehearsal and the start of the competition must be at least one hour.
Couples shall perform the same choreography throughout the rehearsal and the competition. Any changes to the performance, the music or the video content shown at the rehearsal are not allowed.
In Showdance Ballroom the performance is made up of one to five of the regular Ballroom dances; in Showdance Latin, of one to five of the regular Latin dances.
The total duration of the performance, including walking on and leaving the floor, must not exceed 4 minutes. Exceeding the time limit leads to disqualification.
In Showdance Ballroom, dancing without the standard hand position is allowed for no more than 50% of the duration of the performance.
An alternative position is allowed if the couple maintains the character of the Ballroom discipline.
There are no restrictions on positions in Showdance Latin.
Three lifts are permitted for the whole performance, and they may be performed at any point in the show.
A lift is a joint action of the partners in which the male partner raises the female partner off the dance floor to a permissible height, holds her there, and then lowers her back onto the floor.
Lifts are performed to add expressiveness to the performance and must be reasonably comprehensible. Lifts can only be performed by the male partner.
When a couple makes a lift, the judges should not see the effort the couple puts into it.
The couple can start their performance anywhere on the dance floor. The music starts at a clear sign or moment agreed in advance with the sound engineer.
If a couple has a technical problem with the music or the video content during their performance, the couple is given time to fix it and the opportunity to repeat the performance after the last couple.
No props are permitted during the entrance, the performance or the exit.
A "prop" is any item that is not part of the couple's costume. Costume elements are therefore allowed; anything used as a separate object is not.
To make the performance more artistic, couples are allowed to use video content on the screen.
The video content must correspond to the declared theme of the performance and must not draw attention away from the couple.
The duration of the video content must not exceed the total duration of the performance.
The costumes, make-up and hairstyles of both partners must correspond to the declared theme of the performance.
The competition is judged by a panel of line adjudicators and a panel of technical adjudicators.
The panel of technical adjudicators evaluates performance technique and musicality.
The panel of line adjudicators evaluates partnership, choreography and presentation.
Judging is based on four criteria, each divided into two sub-criteria.
Performance technique: posture, line, shape, dance position, static and dynamic balance; variety and complexity of dance patterns and the quality of their performance.
Musicality: the rhythmic structure of the dance composition; filling in a musical phrase and conveying the character of the music.
Partnership: coordination of the partners' actions in performing dance patterns; the spatial sense of the partners.
Choreography and presentation: revealing the idea of the performance, including through costume; variety and contrast of movement, expressiveness, artistry, ease, appropriateness and quality of lifts.
Results are calculated using the Skating System.
Judging in the qualifying rounds is closed: judges mark which couples go through to the next round.
Judging in the final is open by places: each judge ranks the finalists — first, second, third and so on — and these placings are combined into the final standings under the Skating System.
Ties are resolved according to the rules of the Skating System.
The couples placed first, second and third are awarded medals and diplomas.
All finalists are awarded diplomas.
Prize money is paid per couple in each discipline, so the amounts below apply separately in Showdance Ballroom and in Showdance Latin.