By Alexa Mostrom, Fox23 News
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — A teenager from Tahlequah is headed to the Irish Dance World Championships.
Nikolai Stretch has been dancing for about nine years and he gets to do something not every Irish dancer achieves. He is competing in the Irish Dance World Championships.
“This is a very big part of any Irish dancing career ever. Just getting to dance there is a huge thing,” said Nikolai Stretch.
Nikolai went to the world competition last year too, but this year he’s determined to place higher.
“Last year I got seven above last. This year, I’m hoping to beat half my competition which is called a recall,” said Nikolai.
Irish dance is a traditional Gaelic dance. The dancers can’t move their upper body for the most part but move their feet very quickly.
Nikolai qualified for the world championship after placing well at regionals.
“It’s a lot of rhythm, especially in the hard shoes. I like rhythm a lot especially because I’m a progressionist in the band. My life revolves around the rhythm of everything,” said Nikolai Stretch.
Nikolai’s mom, Lena Stretch, is an Irish dancing instructor at McCafferty Academy of Irish Dance in Tahlequah and introduced him to the style.
“I like it because it gives the kiddos the feeling of flight. It gave me the feeling of flight for sure. It gives them the ability to be expressive and compete in a structured environment,” said Lena Stretch.
Lena says she’s excited for Nikolai to go to the competition and get to know other dancers.
“Niki’s the only one from our school that gets to qualify and go to world’s. There’s a lot of wanting to go, but that one is highly competitive. Only three percent of Irish dancers in the world get to qualify and go,” said Lena Stretch.
If you want to learn more about Irish dancing or the World Championship click here.
The world championship will be held March 29-April 5 in Schaumburg, Illinois.
