Top Latin Couple Tsaturyan & Gudyno Eye Back-To-Back WDSF GrandSlam Wins
Top Latin Couple Tsaturyan & Gudyno Eye Back-To-Back WDSF GrandSlam Wins
The biggest stars in DanceSport are heading back onto the competition floor this weekend for the second leg of the WDSF GrandSlam Series in Taipei, Taiwan.
The biggest stars in DanceSport are heading back onto the competition floor this weekend for the second leg of the WDSF GrandSlam Series in Taipei, Taiwan.
Altogether, nine of the top 10 Latin couples in the world rankings (only the No. 10 pairing of Timur Yusupov and Sofia Kharina are missing) and 16 out of the top 20 are set to dance on Saturday. One day later, six of the top 10 Standard couples and 11 out of the top 20 will compete for a prestigious GrandSlam title.
Watch the 2018 WDSF GrandSlam Taipei City LIVE on FloDance!
Latin (June 30) | Standard (July 1)
Here’s a look at some of the Latin division favorites heading into this weekend’s event.
LATIN
Armen Tsaturyan & Svetlana Gudyno (RUS)
GrandSlam: No. 1 (Points: 1,140) | World: No. 1 (Points: 5,609)
Undefeated in 2018, Tsaturyan and Gudyno have dominated the world stage in 14 DanceSport events this year, including the GrandSlam Series’ opener in Helsinki, Finland, back in March. In the final, the couple totaled a 194.458 to edge Marius-Andrei Balan and Khrystyna Moshenska for the win.
GrandSlam Helsinki: 1st Place
Final Score
| SAMBA | CHA CHA CHA | RUMBA | PASO DOBLE | JIVE | TOTAL |
| 38.832 | 38.834 | 38.833 | 39.209 | 38.75 | 194.458 |
Marius-Andrei Balan & Khrystyna Moshenska (GER)
GrandSlam: No. 2 (Points: 1,083) | World: No. 2 (Points: 5,606)
The couple, which dances for Germany, finished a close second to Tsaturyan and Gudyno in Helsinki and trail by just three points overall in the world rankings heading into this weekend.
GrandSlam Helsinki: 2nd Place
Final Score
| SAMBA | CHA CHA CHA | RUMBA | PASO DOBLE | JIVE | TOTAL |
| 38.668 | 38.708 | 38.625 | 38.791 | 38.75 | 193.542 |
Charles-Guillaume Schmitt & Elena Salikhova (FRA)
GrandSlam: No. 3 (Points: 1,026) | World: No. 3 (Points: 5,366)
Schmitt and Salikhova have competed just five times this year but have yet to finish lower than fourth place. In their last outing, they captured a World Open victory on May 26 in Paris.
GrandSlam Helsinki: 3rd Place
Final Score
| SAMBA | CHA CHA CHA | RUMBA | PASO DOBLE | JIVE | TOTAL |
| 37.082 | 37.459 | 37.584 | 37.783 | 37.25 | 187.158 |
Andrey Gusev & Vera Bondareva (RUS)
GrandSlam: No. 4 (Points: 969) | World: No. 6 (Points: 4,763)
Gusev and Bondareva are coming off a win at the WDSF International Open in Villafranca di Vernona, Italy, on July 17. Partners since 2016, the couple currently ranked fourth in the GrandSlam standings and sixth overall in the world rankings.
GrandSlam Helsinki: 4th Place
Final Score
| SAMBA | CHA CHA CHA | RUMBA | PASO DOBLE | JIVE | TOTAL |
| 37.166 | 37.542 | 37.333 | 37.416 | 37.168 | 186.625 |
Andrea Silvestri & Martina Varadi (HUN)
GrandSlam: No. 5 (Points: 912) | World: No. 5 (Points: 4,958)
Dancing for Hungary, Silvestri and Varadi followed up their fifth-place result in Helsinki with an International Open victory in Olbia, Italy, on April 7—their third overall this year—and another top-five result at the European Championship in Debrecen, Hungary, on May 12.
GrandSlam Helsinki: 5th Place
Final Score
| SAMBA | CHA CHA CHA | RUMBA | PASO DOBLE | JIVE | TOTAL |
| 36.5 | 37.166 | 36.793 | 36.917 | 36.416 | 183.792 |