Westside Middle School eighth grader Claire White recently earned the opportunity to compete in the 50th World Irish Dance Championships in Dublin, Ireland from April 4-12.  This event is expected to attract over 5,500 dancers competing in solo, céilí, figure-choreography and dance drama categories in front of around 15,000 spectators. White said that she worked very hard to place where she did in the regional competition.

“Irish dance is pretty complicated,” White said. “I go to dance class five days a week for three hours at a time. To qualify for the world championships, you need to get a high placement at your regionals. This year, I placed second out of 112 girls and my goal in Dublin is to get [in the] top half at worlds.”

White said that she started dancing at a young age, which she said she believes contributed to her success over the years.

“I have been dancing for a little over six years now, and my studio is called Dowds Irish Dance Academy,” White said. “I have been practicing my routines for the regional competition for the past year, but we have made changes to some of the dances within that time period.” 

According to White, she will need to impress some of the best and most qualified judges in the world at this upcoming competition. Neill O’Leary is a top Irish dance judge who judged the World Irish Dance Championship in 2018. In an interview with the IrishCentral Newsletter, O’Leary said there are distinctive traits that help him identify the champion.

“In any competitive sport, there are fine margins of error between winners and losers,” O’Leary said. “At the top end of Irish dancing competitions, the difference between first and second can be like splitting hairs, but the first place winner always has that something special that makes them stand out from the crowd: their skill set and performance is just that little bit better.”