Review of International Dance Organization (IDO)
World Mambo Championship
Fontainbleu Hotel, Miami Beach, Florida, USA
September 3, 2002

by Barbara Fernández

On Tuesday, September 3, 2002 at the Fontainbleau Hotel in Miami Beach, Florida, the International Dance Organization hosted its official 2002 World Mambo Championship.

A distinguished panel of sixteen international adjudicators, including but not limited to Bill Fowler Chairman (USA), Corky Ballas (Great Britain), Nils-Häkan Carlzon, President IDO (Sweden), Kirsten Dan-Jensen (Denmark), Wolfgang Opitz (Germany), and Cuban Pete, the "Mambo King" (USA), carefully scored the twenty nine multi-national teams as they competed admirably in varicolored costumes and gleaming sequins.

The music this year was excellent, up-tempo with a clear clave beat. Legs flying, hips swaying, the couples danced, their individuality most apparent in the quarter finals heat of the six pair dance off solos. Winners: José deCamps and Viktoriya Drubetskaya, New York, USA.

As a point of history, Mambo was born in Cuba in 1937 when Cachao and his brother Orestes added a new sound to the verse section of the Danzón. It hit its peak in the 1950's, its home The Palladium Ballroom, New York City. Mambo and Salsa, are inter-connected, both rooted in Cuban Son.

The IDO will launch a Street Latino and a Rueda de Casino competition in 2003. Stay tuned to SalsaPower for further developments.

 

 

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