What is Dancesport?
Put simply, Dancesport is a competitive form of ballroom dancing. Competitive ballroom dancing, as distinct from its more widely practiced social form, has existed for many years and dates as far back as the early 1920s. Latterly, in order to better reflect its sporting nature and following the trend set within other European countries, it is now referred to in the UK as Dancesport (the sport of competition dancing).

In common with many sports, Dancesport has a very highly organised international structure, with competitions throughout the world, ranging from local 'Sunday circuit' competitions to World Championships.

In recognition of its sporting nature, on September 8,1997, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced that it had granted outright recognition to the International DanceSport Federation (IDSF) as the world governing body for Dancesport and granted the IDSF full membership of the IOC. This was a landmark decision and is one of the first steps towards Dancesport being included in the Olympic Games. The IDSF and wider Dancesport community hopes that this may be as soon as 2008.

The Dances
Dancesport consists of two distinct styles:
Modern (or "Standard", as it is now known internationally), which includes five distinct yet complimentary dances. These are the Waltz, Tango, Foxtrot, Quickstep and Viennese Waltz;
Latin American (often shortened to just Latin), which also includes five distinct but also complimentary dances. These are the Cha-Cha-Cha, Samba, Rumba, Paso Doble and Jive.