Editing Ballroom dance (section)

== Competitive dancing ==
{{Main|Dancesport}}
[[File:Cha-Cha-Cha Valente Cruz 9543.JPG|alt=|thumb|[[Cha-cha-cha (dance)|Cha-cha-cha]] dance at competitions in Austria.]]
Competitions, sometimes referred to as [[dancesport]], range from world championships, regulated by the [[World Dance Council]] (WDC), to less advanced dancers at various proficiency levels. Most competitions are divided into professional and amateur, though in the USA [[pro-am]] competitions typically accompany professional competitions.<ref>[http://www.unitedstatesdancechampionships.com/ USDC] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311000126/http://www.unitedstatesdancechampionships.com/ |date=2007-03-11 }}</ref> The [[International Olympic Committee]] now recognizes [[competitive dance|competitive]] ballroom dance.<ref>[http://www.idsf.net/index.tpl?id=30 Certificate of Olympic recognition of WDSF] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100626010044/http://www.idsf.net/index.tpl?id=30 |date=2010-06-26 }}</ref> It has recognized another body, the [[World DanceSport Federation]] (WDSF), as the sole representative body for dancesport in the [[Olympic Games]].

Ballroom dance competitions are regulated by each country in its own way. There are about 30 countries which compete regularly in international competitions. There are another 20 or so countries which have membership of the WDC and/or the WDSF, but whose dancers rarely appear in international competitions.<ref>Complete listings of affiliations are given in the programmes of the major competitions.</ref> In Britain there is the [[British Dance Council]], which grants national and regional championship titles, such as the British Ballroom Championships, the [[British Sequence Championships]] and the United Kingdom Championships. In the United States, the member branches of the WDC (National Dance Council of America) and the WDSF ([[USA Dance]]) both grant national and regional championship titles.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.unitedstatesdancechampionships.com/ |title=United States Dance Championships® |access-date=2007-03-20 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311000126/http://www.unitedstatesdancechampionships.com/ |archive-date=2007-03-11 }}  USDC</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usadancenationals.com/ |title=USA DANCE National DanceSport Championships |access-date=2017-03-23 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170508194905/http://www.usadancenationals.com/ |archive-date=2017-05-08 }} USA Dance Nationals</ref>

Ballroom dancing competitions in the former USSR also included the [[Soviet Ballroom dances]], or ''Soviet Programme''. Australian [[New Vogue (dance)|New Vogue]] is danced both competitively and socially. In competition, there are 15 recognized New Vogue dances, which are performed by the competitors in sequence. These dance forms are not recognized internationally, neither are the US variations such as American Smooth, and Rhythm. Such variations in dance and competition methods are attempts to meets perceived needs in the local market-place.

Internationally, the [[Blackpool Dance Festival]], hosted annually at [[Blackpool]], England is considered the most prestigious event a dancesport competitor can attend.

[[Formation dance]] is another style of competitive dance recognized by the WDSF. In this style, multiple dancers (usually in couples and typically up to 16 dancers at one time) compete on the same team, moving in and out of various formations while dancing. The [[Blackpool Dance Festival]] also holds an annual event for competitive formation dancing.

=== Elements of competition ===
[[File:MIT 2006 Latin Intermediate.jpg|thumb|Intermediate level international style Latin dancing at the 2006 [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]] ballroom dance competition. A judge stands in the foreground.]]

In competitive ballroom, dancers are judged by diverse criteria such as poise, the hold or frame, posture, musicality and expression, timing, body alignment and shape, floor craft, foot and leg action, and presentation. Judging in a performance-oriented sport is inevitably subjective in nature, and controversy and complaints by competitors over judging placements are not uncommon. The scorekeepers—called scrutineers—will tally the total number recalls accumulated by each couple through each round until the finals when the [[Skating system]] is used to place each couple by ordinals, typically 1–6, though the number of couples in the final may vary. Sometimes, up to 8 couples may be present on the floor during the finals.

Competitors dance at different levels based on their ability and experience. The levels are split into two categories, syllabus and open. The syllabus levels are newcomer/pre-bronze, bronze, silver, and gold—with gold the highest syllabus level and newcomer the lowest. In these levels, moves are restricted to those written in a syllabus, and illegal moves can lead to disqualification. Each level, bronze, silver, and gold, has different moves on their syllabus, increasing in difficulty. There are three levels in the open category; novice, pre-champ, and champ in increasing order of skill. At those levels, dancers no longer have restrictions on their moves, so complex routines are more common.

=== Medal evaluations ===
Medal evaluations for amateurs enable dancers' individual abilities to be recognized according to conventional standards. In medal evaluations, which are run by bodies such as the [[Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing]] (ISTD) and the [[United Kingdom Alliance (UKA)]], each dancer performs two or more dances in a certain genre in front of a judge. Genres such as Modern Ballroom or Latin are the most popular. Societies such as the ISTD and UKA also offer medal tests on other dance styles (such as Country & Western, Rock 'n Roll or Tap). In some North American examinations, levels include Newcomer, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Novice, Pre-championship, and Championship; each level may be further subdivided into either two or four separate sections.