Wageed Sahabodien, a resident of Worcester and student at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), and his partner Dené Visser from Cape Town were recently named youth ballroom champions in an international dance contest at Sun City.
Rumba in the Jungle is a contest that takes place annually, with participants entering from across the globe, and is the biggest dance competition in South Africa.
It is also for this reason that being placed first in this specific competition carries a lot of weight, and puts Wageed and his partner on track for South African colours in ballroom dancing.
He explained he started with ballroom dancing at age 8 and never looked back.
“I like ballroom dancing because it is a more classic dance form.”
He describes his chosen dance form as “gentlemanly” and, as ballroom requires of dancers, enjoys connecting with people. These, he says, are qualities that mark the characteristics of a gentleman out as one is encouraged to take note and handle others with care.
The ballroom duo practises four times a week with two coaches – a commitment that pays off, especially since both Wageed and Dené frequently excel in national and international dance contests.
The partners will also compete in two upcoming dance competitions in December, the South African championships of Dance Sport United South Africa (Dusa) and the South African championships Dance Foundation, which will put the couple in the running for South African colours.
