Japan’s Yamada wins first place in the American ballet competition

New York (Jiji Press) – Japanese dancer Yuna Yamada won first place in the pre-competitive age-classical women’s division at this year’s Youth America Grand Prix international ballet competition in New York on Saturday.

“I want to be a dancer who is influential enough to make the audience laugh,” said Yamada, 12, from Sapporo, Hokkaido.

Joining other Japanese in the pre-competitive age category, which from January 1 is for dancers aged 9 to 11, 12-year-old Anne Takahashi from Saitama city took third place in the women’s classical and contemporary categories.

Yuto Teranishi, 10, from Nagoya, finished third in the men’s classical category and Kohaku Kihara, 12, from Kyoto city, finished second in the men’s contemporary category.

In the junior division, for those between 12 and 14 years old, Japanese dancer Eita Akita, 14, from Minoo, Osaka Prefecture, took third place in the men’s category.

The YAGP offers promising participants the opportunity to study at ballet schools around the world with scholarships.