KINGSTON, Jamaica – The Spanish Town Dance troupe came out on top of seventeen other dance groups to win $250,000 and other prizes at the finals of the 2009 World Reggae Dance Championships held on Saturday (August 1) at the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre. The all male, six member group also took home the Championship trophy, cellular phones courtesy of Digicel and a $25,000 gift certificate courtesy of Cooyah.
The ‘Ivan Squad’, a group of Japanese nationals, placed second and collected a $100,000 cash prize and a $15,000 gift certificate from Cooyah. The Kingston based, ‘Ed Hardy’ dancers, placed third and received a trophy, $50,000 and a $10,000 gift certificate also from Cooyah.
Other finalists included the Cali Ville Dancers, V.I.P Squad, One Plus Dancers, Supreme Unit, Classic Dancers, Target Dancers, Blaze Dancers, HJ Dance Group, Junior MOB, World Wind Dancers, Twaconomics, Hiyah Style Dancers, Cash Money Dancers, Escalade Dancers and defending champions the Untouchable Squad, who received gold medals for their participation.
Presentations were made to the winning group by Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, Olivia Grange M.P, joined by renowned actor Carl Bradshaw. Other presenters included Miss Jamaica Festival Queen 2009, Kamesha Turner, Competition Coordinator, Juliet Cowan-Morgan and Executive Director of the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC), Delroy Gordon.
Hosted by the ‘vibe master’, Jerry D, guest appearances were made by Wayne Marshall, Christopher Martin, D’Angel, Shane-O and Romain Virgo. Organized by the JCDC, the championship was hosted in collaboration with corporate sponsors Digicel, Cooyah and Dr. Lushus and formed part of the Jamaica Festival 2k9 celebrations.
