MoonWalk heroes: Diane Davie: '˜What it's like to be a four-time World Irish Dance Champion'
I started Irish dancing, when I was 15 years old, after seeing an advertisement in the local paper offering classes. I was already doing Ballet, Tap, Jazz and other dance forms but was really keen to take up Irish.
I had watched Riverdance on Eurovision in 1994 and had never seen anything like it. I remember my mum telling me to switch my TV over and that was the first time I had seen Irish dancing. I knew then I wanted to be able to do it.
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Hide AdBeing crowned World Champion was a dream come true. The previous year I had placed third, so I was more determined than ever to win. I was training at my local gym daily as well as attending classes 3-4 times a week. I sacrificed my place on a professional dance course to concentrate on Irish dance and would often miss out on social events but in the end it was all worth it.
I would say the most challenging part was knowing my competitors had possibly been dancing since a very young age and I had only come into the world of Irish dance as a young adult, so I had some catching up to do. It never deterred me, and I won four consecutive world championship titles. On the fourth occasion I gained full marks from all adjudicators!
All my dancing put me in good stead for the double-marathon Over The Moon Ultra at The MoonWalk Scotland last year.
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