World Irish Dancing Championships claimed by third family member
A mother-daughter-son combination has become the first to all win the World Irish Dancing Championships.
The Express
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AN East Hills family has jigged its way into the history books at the World Irish Dancing Championships.
The trio were the first mother-daughter-son combination to all win the event.
Fiona-Gaye Moore was the first, taking the win as a 15-year-old in 1980 in Ireland.
“I was the first female dancer outside the United Kingdom to win,” she said.
“The kids asked when they were old enough if they could learn.
“Ceili won in 2014 in London. At that stage, we were the second mother-daughter combination to win.
“It was a special moment and a dream she had from when she started to get competitive with it.”
Now, son Jonty, 19, has completed the trifecta, winning the championships in Glasgow after dancing on Good Friday.
He said it was his ninth time competing at the worlds.
“I didn’t really have a reaction, I was a bit shocked,” he said. “It took a bit to sink in.
“It’s very cool to have the record. It’s not really something you think about beforehand but, now it’s been achieved, you’ve got an opportunity to look back and kind of appreciate what you’ve done.”
Mr Moore said his mum had been his and sister Ceili’s, 23, dance teacher since she started the Fiona-Gaye Moore Academy of Irish Dancing about five years ago.
He said the championships consisted of two rounds – first with a heavy shoe to either a jig or a hornpipe and the second a reel in a light shoe.
“A certain amount of dancers get recalled to do their last dance, which is back into the heavy shoes to a tune of your choice,” he said.
“The heavy shoe is more like a tap type of routine, while the light shoe is a softer shoe, so more of a balletic routine.”
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