Haileybury’s Keysborough students won a series of gold medals at the TFT Schoolaerobics Australian National Championships in Adelaide.
During five days of tough competition, the students impressed the judges and didn’t miss a carefully choreographed step.
Year 9 student, Chelsea Armstrong, won gold in the junior contemporary dance category and also in a duo with fellow Haileybury student, Braya Jade Hanssen.
A young achiever who’s been dancing since she was two years old, Chelsea also won the national title in the aerobics secondary singles event
“My Mum owns a dance studio that my Nan started so I’ve always been around dance. My sister and cousin both danced and so I spent a lot of time at the studio and at competitions with them. I couldn’t wait until I was old enough to start dancing myself,” says Chelsea.
When she was 10, she also started doing aerobics at Haileybury.
“I’ve never won a national medal at all for aerobics but it was a goal I set for myself so I was super happy to win.
“These results for dance and aerobics were my best ever and I’m excited to be a national champion.”
Fitting 21 hours of dance training in a week with homework and some downtime to rest can be challenging but winning gold and national titles make the effort worthwhile.
Her favourite styles of dance are jazz and contemporary.
Braya Jade Hanssen, Year 10 at Haileybury, was also an early starter in the world of dance. She began performing dance and calisthenics at the age of two.
“Seeing all the ‘big girls’ dance when I was little made me want to dance and become the best that I could be.”
She trains for 20 hours a week and while contemporary and jazz are her focus, she also does ballet, tap, hip-hop, lyrical and musical theatre.
She has already won a series of national titles and added solo and duo gold medals at the recent competition to an impressive collection.
“I did five routines and won gold in all but I’m particularly proud of my solo because there were a lot of amazing girls competing on the day.
“It’s the best feeling to be a national champion and to win with your team.”
Mia Leys is the proud Dance Captain at Haileybury and another experienced performer who has been dancing since she was three-years-old.
Inside and outside school she dedicates 14 hours a week to her craft while managing the pressures that come with being in Year 12.
She has attended Nationals three times with Haileybury and in that time Ms Leys has walked away with nine gold medals, silver and a bronze.
However, she says being elected Dance Captain has been her biggest achievement.
“Being part of and leading an incredible group of students will be one of the lasting memories I will take away from my time at Haileybury.
“For many of the girls, the dance and aerobics program has been part of school life from the age of six.
“All our teams worked tirelessly all year for that moment on stage and every single team did their best. I’m proud, thrilled and very, very happy!”
