The United Country Western Dance Council (UCWDC) is an organization that advocates for and organizes competitive country/western dancesport events. UCWDC regionally-sanctioned events are hosted in more than two dozen U.S. cities and also in the nations of Canada, the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, South Korea, Belgium, Malaysia, Ireland, Japan, China, South Africa, and Lithuania. The UCWDC is based on a framework of event directors, who are owners of regional dance-competition events in cities around the world. The event directors are overseen by a board of directors. The board of directors governs the overall organization and maintains a standard of operations, uniform competition format, judging, scoring and comprehensive rules, adhered to by dancesport competitors. These dancesport participants compete at authorized regional dance competitions during the dance season, beginning in January and ending in December of any given year. After attending a required minimum number of dance events, dancers are able to establish eligibility for attending the UCWDC Country Dance World Championships at the end of the year.

History

The UCWDC was established in 1989 and was incorporated in 1990 as a non-profit organization in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania. In 1980, the film Urban Cowboy, featuring John Travolta, was released. The movie influenced popular culture with not only the success of three #1 hits on the country music charts, but the portrayal of a country/western nightclub, country/western attire and a dance competition at the Dallas, Texas honkytonk, Gilley’s. Country/western dance became popular in the United States and gave rise to nightclubs such as the Grizzly Rose in Denver, Colorado, the Lone Star Cafe in New York City, New York and the Wrangler’s Roost in San Diego, California. A new dance craze began in the United States and with it, the rise of country/western dance competitions. In 1989, a group of 21 country/western dance-event owners met in Grantville, Pennsylvania with the goal of creating a national organization with uniform rules, teaching canon, judging, dance standards and competition formats. Prior to the creation of the UCWDC, country/western dance events had differing formats and rules. The UCWDC created a uniform structure.

Gallery of regional UCWDC championship belt buckles

UCWDC Country Dance World Championships

The UCWDC Country Dance World Championships, popularly referred to as "Worlds", is an annual competition which awards country/western world dancesport championship titles to individuals, couples, and dance teams from around the globe. Worlds has been held every year, since its inception in 1993, with the exception of the 2021 event which was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The world championships are the culmination of a competition season and have been located primarily inside the United States, however they were held once in Canada, once in the Netherlands, and once in Sweden. "Worlds" is the largest event on the UCWDC calendar. Worlds 2020 had over 6,500 entries, while Worlds 2023 has over 7,000 entries.

Adjudication

The UCWDC maintains a program for judge training and certification in order to establish uniformity and credibility. Potential candidates for this training must pay fees for training, adhere to a code of conduct, and maintain currency as a UCWDC adjudicator. The Vice President of Rules oversees UCWDC-certified judges, maintains a list (or "pool") of qualified judges and establishes standards for judging methodology.

Dance divisions

Competitors at UCWDC events are required to have a current UCWDC associate membership. Dancesport contestants may register in couples, line dance, teams, ProAm, ProPro, cabaret or showtime competition divisions. These divisions are divided by skill level and by age. Dancesport competition occurs via a system of “heats”. As a heat begins, contestants enter the floor from a staging area, take positions, a deejay plays music and the contestants perform. UCWDC couples, ProAm, and ProPro may compete in as many as eight country/western dances which are danced in the following prescribed order; triple two-step, nightclub, waltz, polka, cha cha, east coast swing, two-step, and west coast swing.

Couples

In couples competition, one partner, generally a male, is the "lead" and the other, generally a female, the "follow". Leads wear a number pinned to their back. The number allows the judges to assign judging scores to the appropriate competitive couple. In UCWDC couples competition, dancers compete at a dance level commensurate with their skill abilities and/or qualifications. Dancers may choose to compete in Classic style or Showcase style. In Classic, the competitors do not know which song the deejay will choose for them. In Showcase, couples choreograph routines to specific songs. Dance levels: Couples divisions are also organized by age

ProAm and ProPro

ProAm couples are a dance partnership formed between a professional dancer and a student. In general, the student pays the professional to dance with them in competition. ProPro couples are made up of two professional dancers, one of which is generally the senior instructor and the other, a professional who is the "student". The students wear a number pinned to their back. In UCWDC ProAm or ProPro competition, student dancers compete at a dance level commensurate with their skill abilities and/or qualifications. Dance levels: ProAm or ProPro divisions are also organized by age

UCWDC regional events