Slava Sergiev leads his protégé, Pinky Puno, in their opening number, Le Jazz Hot.

Michaela ‘Pinky’ Puno lit up the night at the Makati Shangri-La ballroom. The talented wife of DILG Secretary Ronaldo Puno, Pinky has put the Philippines on the map, with the creation of the Philippine StarBall. On its third year, the  ballroom dancing competition showcased 500 contestants from 29 countries including the Philippines.  

It was a stupendous assortment of high-profile dancers. Pinky tripped the light fantastic with Russian partner, Slava Sergiev in a highly applauded opening number, entitled: Le Jazz Hot. Performed with six Filipino dancers as back up, the ingenious choreography was done by one of the world’s premier choreographers, Taliat Tarsinov. In the Latin category, Riccardo Cocchi and partner Yulia Zagoruychengko won top prize. Arunas Bizokas and partner Katushka Demidova won in the Professional Standard category.  In the Amateur category, Junj Batagelj and Jagoda Strukelj of Slovenia won the Latin and Amateur Standard.  Andrea Ghigiarelli and Sara Andracchio of Italy won First Place.

The event had the support of Jojo Carino, President of the Council of United Professional Dance Teachers, Inc., the Department of Tourism, First Gentleman’s Foundation, PCSO and Pagcor.