DUNOON and Bute dancers enjoyed a string of successes as competitors from across Scotland and around the world descended on the town for this year’s Cowal Gathering.
With some of the biggest names in Highland dancing competing at Dunoon Stadium, local dancers made their mark across the Scottish National Championships, Argyll Trophy and Argyll Championships – while Rothesay’s Lucy Cameron also earned a coveted place on the World Championship stage.
Among the standout home performances were two first places for Dunoon dancers in the Argyll competitions.
Georgia Petro took top spot in Event 6A of the pre-premier Argyll Trophy, ahead of Rothesay’s Leya McMillan in second and Emily Lord of Oban in third.
There was another Dunoon victory in the Argyll Championships, where Amelia May Smith won Event 52. Fellow Dunoon dancers Mara Mcarthur and Lois Cook also placed fourth and sixth respectively in the same event.
Erin Brolly enjoyed success at both national and Argyll level. She placed sixth in Event F of the Scottish National Championships before going on to take second place in Event 51A of the Argyll Championships.
Sophie Alison Stewart, also of Dunoon, finished sixth in Event 51A.
Local dancers featured heavily elsewhere in the Argyll Championships, with Naomi Baxter taking third, Rachel Gillies fourth and Leah Hobday fifth in Event 53B, while Mirrin Mcarthur secured sixth place in Event 53A.
There was plenty for Bute to celebrate too.
Lucy Cameron of Rothesay took third place in Event K of the Scottish National Championships before achieving the biggest milestone of her weekend by qualifying from Heat B of the Adult World Championship Qualifiers.
The achievement earned Lucy a place among the elite dancers competing in Saturday’s World Highland Dancing Championship and made her the first dancer from Rothesay’s Speirs School of Highland Dancing to qualify for the Worlds.
Bute’s younger dancers also collected a series of prizes in the Argyll Trophy.
Leya McMillan of Rothesay took second in Event 6A, while Rachel Isabella Hunter of the Isle of Bute was runner-up in Event 6C.
In Event 7B, Ella-Mae McInairnie of the Isle of Bute took second place, with Rothesay’s Lolajane McMillan finishing third.
Bute dancers also featured strongly in the Argyll Championships. Olivia Mary Durrant and Ella Docherty, both listed as Isle of Bute competitors, finished fourth and sixth respectively in Event 51.
Sophie Mellor of the Isle of Bute took fourth place in Event 51A, with Kingarth’s Isabella Gray finishing fifth.
The results capped a successful three days of Highland dancing at the Gathering, which began with the World Championship qualifying competitions on Thursday before the Scottish National Championships on Friday and Saturday’s Argyll competitions and World Championship finals.
For the local dancers, it meant the opportunity not only to compete at one of Highland dancing’s most prestigious events, but to collect an impressive haul of results in front of a home crowd.
