{"id":231793,"date":"2026-04-07T13:39:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T23:39:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=231793"},"modified":"2026-04-07T13:39:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T23:39:19","slug":"ballroom-dance-national-champs-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/04\/07\/ballroom-dance-national-champs-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Shall we dance? 1-2-3 national championships for UH<\/abbr> ballroom dance team"},"content":{"rendered":"
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2026 UH<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> Nationals Team (Photo credit: Synthia Sumukti)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at Mānoa<\/span> ballroom dance team won its third consecutive national title at the National Collegiate DanceSport Championships<\/a> (NCDC<\/abbr>), in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, March 27–29.<\/p>\n

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Alexander Picken and D’Elle Martin in the American Smooth style. (Photo credit: Gregory Snyder)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Competing against 37 colleges, UH<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> once again took first place for “highest point average,” as well as a close second place for the overall team championship, asserting its place among the nation\u2019s top ballroom dance college teams. Winning top honors in the highest point average requires most team members to perform exceptionally well in all events.<\/p>\n

The dancers of the Ballroom Dance Club @UHM<\/abbr>—a registered independent organization at UH<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span>—are trained and coached by Ravi Narayan and Synthia Sumukti. Narayan and Sumukti also represented Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> in the senior age division placing 1st in several events.<\/p>\n

“We are no longer the underdogs, so all the other colleges are looking at us as the team to beat,” said Narayan, who is also an adjunct faculty member in the UH<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> Department of Information and Computer Sciences<\/a>. “The bar is getting raised higher and higher each year, but we prevailed once again. We are incredibly proud of the dedication of our dancers who put in many hours to prepare for this competition. We are grateful for the incredible support we have received from the entire ballroom community in the state of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>.”<\/p>\n[vc_row][vc_column][vc_video link=”https:\/\/youtube.com\/shorts\/iRSk_VAMmIk” el_aspect=”916″ align=”right” el_id=”wrap-video-right”][vc_column_text]\n

The Ballroom Dance Club @UHM<\/abbr> was formed in September 2022, and the team took first place for “highest team average” in 2024<\/a> and 2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n

“Nationals was an amazing and eye-opening experience for me,” said Caleb Zerbe, who competed in the nationals for the first time. “Getting to see so many people dance and enjoy themselves on the floor made me realize how fun dancing can be, even at the highest stages. It was a moment that helped me build a lot of confidence, and one that I will never forget.”<\/p>\n

Christopher Ramirez, who competed on all three victorious UH<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> teams, added, “Given the opportunity to compete at my third nationals, there is always something new to learn. Winning for the third year in a row has reminded me just how incredible it is to be a part of this team.”<\/p>\n

Tough competition<\/h2>\n

NCDC<\/abbr> is a grueling competition with events starting at 7 a.m. every morning. It consisted of multiple events based on proficiency (bronze, silver, gold, etc.). Each student danced in up to 32 different events at the bronze and silver skill levels. They competed in all four styles of ballroom dance including International Standard (waltz, tango, viennese waltz, foxtrot and quickstep), American Smooth (waltz, tango, foxtrot and viennese waltz), American Rhythm (chacha, rumba, swing, bolero and mambo) and International Latin (samba, chacha, rumba, paso doble and jive).<\/p>\n

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ʻAulani<\/span> Wagner and Kanaru Ebi in the International Latin style. (Photo credit: Gregory Snyder)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Several students took individual first place awards in their respective divisions defeating up to 70 other competitors in some events. This trip was designed to give the team exposure to a collegiate competition, as Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> has no statewide collegiate ballroom competitions.<\/p>\n

More about the Ballroom Dance Club<\/h2>\n

The Ballroom Dance Club offers beginner classes to all UH<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> students, faculty and staff in studio 2 in the athletics department from 6—7:30 p.m. on Tuesdays. No dance experience is required. For more information, visit the website<\/a> or visit their Instagram page @bdcuhm.<\/p>\n

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Noah Asano and Amanda Kanthack in the International Latin style. (Photo credit: Gregory Snyder)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The team would like to thank the Department of Information and Computer Sciences, UH<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> Department of Athletics, Student Activity and Program Fee Board, Associated Students of the University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>, USA<\/abbr> Dance Honolulu and the Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation for facility and financial support.<\/p>\n

UH<\/abbr> Mānoa<\/span> 2026 nationals collegiate and adult team roster:<\/p>\n

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  • Ravi Narayan, faculty (computer science), coach and alumnus<\/li>\n
  • Synthia Sumukti, coach and alumna<\/li>\n
  • ʻAulani<\/span> Wagner, library science and American studies<\/li>\n
  • Alexander Picken, Earth science<\/li>\n
  • Amanda Kanthack, psychology and Japanese<\/li>\n
  • Caleb Zerbe, computer science<\/li>\n
  • Christopher Ramirez, linguistics<\/li>\n
  • Christopher Wright, electrical engineering<\/li>\n
  • Courtney Hisamoto, computer science<\/li>\n
  • D’Elle Martin, architecture<\/li>\n
  • Elijah Saloma, computer science<\/li>\n
  • Gregory Snyder, mechanical engineering<\/li>\n
  • Hannah Madiam, kinesiology<\/li>\n
  • Iris Calauan, pre-nursing<\/li>\n
  • Jonathan Bona, civil engineering<\/li>\n
  • Julietta Lopez, architecture<\/li>\n
  • Kanaru Ebi, psychology<\/li>\n
  • Karl Merritt, mechanical engineering<\/li>\n
  • Luis Hernandez, electrical and computer engineering<\/li>\n
  • Lyndsey Moku, political science<\/li>\n
  • Maya Ito, psychology<\/li>\n
  • Michaella Villanueva, computer science<\/li>\n
  • Noah Asano, computer science<\/li>\n
  • Samantha Reed, computer science<\/li>\n
  • Shaelyn Loo, computer science<\/li>\n
  • Tessa Heidkamp, journalism and political science<\/li>\n
  • Andrew Lin, computer science alumnus<\/li>\n
  • Sydney Kim, computer science alumna<\/li>\n
  • Jason Aguda, computer engineering alumnus<\/li>\n
  • Matthew Rummel, political science and business alumnus<\/li>\n
  • Ariel Ramos, cinematic arts animation alumna<\/li>\n
  • Yong-Sung Masuda, computer science alumnus<\/li>\n
  • Wilson Tran, computer science alumnus<\/li>\n
  • Florence Liu, faculty, mathematics<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n