Nine times professional World Latin American dance champion Bryan Watson is a name many know and love in the ballroom dancing world.  Born in 1969 in Durban, South Africa, Bryan first set foot in a dance school at the age of 5 learning both Ballroom and Latin dancing. 

 

A passion for Latin American, Bryan soon focused solely on that craft alone and in 1982 began his partnership with Claudia Leoni. In 1988 Bryan took the brave decision to leave South Africa and live in England to further his dancing career. By 1990, Bryan and Claudia won their first major victory as Amateur Latin International Open Dancing Champions in London, representing Italy. After 5 years of a successful amateur partnership, the couple decided to progress into professional Latin in 1992. However, not long after this move the couple decided to split and go their separate ways.   Watch Bryan and Claudia dance here >

 

BRYAN AND KAREN HARDY 

After taking a short break Bryan soon came back to the dancefloor in 1993, forming a new partnership with Karen Hardy where they entered their first competition together at the Closed British in 1993.

 

   

 

 'Our partnership was an overnight phenomenal success.

 

 During my five years together with Bryan we battled against the greatest champions of the World to date representing England, namely; Donnie Burns MBE and Gaynor Fairweather MBE, Sammy Stopford and Barbara McColl, Corky and Shirley Ballas, Jukka Haapalainen and Suurpa Suutari, Hans Galke and Bianca Schreiber, Allan Tornsberg with Vibeke Toft and later with Carmen Vincelj, Paul Killick with Karina Killikova and later with Vibeke Toft and Jason Gilkison and Peta Roby. We travelled extensively throughout the world to destinations such as Asia, Europe, the Americas, Scandinavia and South Africa all in our efforts to be champions of the world.

 

Respect was gained through our teaching, demonstrating and lecturing worldwide and in 1996 the Ballroom Dancers Federation, a leading authority associated with the Ballroom and Latin dance profession, named us as “the most outstanding professional Latin American couple” for 1995/96, and we went on to receive the prestigious Carla Alan award for “services to the dance world”.

Before my retirement from the competitive world of dance in March 1999 my successful partnership with Bryan saw us as undefeated, United Kingdom, International, British National, World Masters, Open Italian, Yankie Classic, London Open, Osaka World Trophy Champions of Latin American Dance.'

- Karen Hardy

 

 Watch Bryan and Karen dance here >

 

BRYAN AND CARMEN

 A month after Karen’s retirement in 1999 Bryan partnered with Carmen and began representing Germany.

 

    

 

‘We met at a later stage in our dancing career, we were both finalists but Bryan was ahead of me results wise. We were both established dancers and had the same dance teachers but our dancing journeys were very different.  We needed to find some sort of common ground that we could hook onto and to start with, it was very difficult’. 

- Carmen

 

‘Our success really depended a lot on our intellect at that moment in time, for example when we started dancing there were a lot of issues with connection, so we decided we would partner side by side. We did the whole choreography side by side for the first Blackpool and it was a nightmare! We came third. Hazel Fletcher wrote “this couple did way too much side to side” and we were like yes we know, because we can’t do anything together yet lol! We did progress and we spent more time discussing connections and altered the choreography as we went along. We even took some time out of competitions and shows as we felt we needed more inspiration. Our intellect was needed at different moments and phases in our dancing career, which really helped us to be where we are today and have the success that we did. The advice our teachers gave us at the right times also played a huge part.’

 - Bryan

 

‘When we got together we knew each other very well but it wasn’t the case of he is the best dancer for you, I generally liked Bryan as a person. There was a personal and mental connection that was so much more than “he is the right physique for you”.  - Carmen   ‘And you can’t teach personal connection’    - Bryan   watch Bryan and Carmen dance here  >

 

Bryan and Carmen’s first competition was in 1999 at the British Open Championships and their greatest achievement was winning the Professional Latin at the Blackpool Dance Festival in 2007, for the seventh time. From 1999 to 2007 Bryan and Carmen were the champions in all tournaments and competitions becoming nine time Professional Latin World Champions.

 

 

 

At the peak of their career, Bryan and Carmen mutually decided to retire in the Spring of 2007, putting their focus and energy into non-competitive dancing. Since retirement, Bryan’s goal has always been to promote the authenticity of Latin American dancing, believing dancers should be proud of their craft and to study it; finding a balance of taking the foundations and incorporating your style and personality, to make the dance authentic.

 

Bryan and Carmen continue to live in Wimbledon and teach in Croydon at Mattico Dance Studios. They give regular Latin masterclasses and tutorials online SOULM8S along with  Allan Tornsberg & Vibeke Toft, Hans Galke & Bianka Schreiber.