🏆 Our New Zealand Teams Shine at the South Island Latin Dance Championships 2026
While Reuben & Miléna are now based here in Cyprus teaching and growing Salsa Latina Cyprus, Salsa Latina’s original home in Christchurch, New Zealand continues to be a huge part of what they do. 🇨🇾🇳🇿
This weekend, the Salsa Latina New Zealand teams took to the floor at the
South Island Latin Dance Championships 2026 (National Level Competition)
.. and came away with some fantastic results! 🔥🏆
Reuben & Miléna recently spent a month back in New Zealand working directly with the dancers and teams, training, developing and preparing them for the competition season. All of the choreography for the teams and many soloists was also created by Reuben & Miléna from Cyprus, with training and development continuing between the two countries throughout the year.
So watching the results come through from New Zealand was a particularly proud moment!
🏆 Three Team Podiums!
All three Salsa Latina teams placed at the championships:
🥇 1st Place – Salsa Latina Bachata Team - Latin Couples Teams
🥇 1st Place – Salsa Latina Mambo Team - Salsa Teams
🥈 2nd Place – Salsa Latina Aspire Mambo Ladies Team - Salsa Shines Teams
Two championship titles and a second place from three teams, a fantastic result and a reflection of the enormous amount of work that has gone into developing these routines and dancers.
For Reuben & Miléna, being able to continue directing and developing Salsa Latina NZ while establishing their new school here in Cyprus has been an exciting new chapter.
With more than 25 years each in Latin dance, competition, performance and teaching, they bring that experience into what they are now building in Limassol Cyprus - while continuing to work closely with the dancers they have developed in New Zealand.
And the results extended well beyond the teams!
🏅 Individual & Couples Results
Amateur Female Salsa Solo
🥇 1st – Isabella Posa
Amateur Female Latin Solo
🥇 1st – Isabella Posa
Open Female Latin Solo
🥉 3rd – Tayla Malyon
Open Male Solos
🥈 2nd – Arlo Pizzey
Amateur Bachata Freestyle
🥇 1st – Milan Mendez & Isabella Posa
Open Salsa Freestyle
🥈 2nd – Scott Suen* & Naomi Fahy
Amateur Salsa Freestyle
🥇 1st – Nader Bermudez & Kate Oorschot
🥉 3rd – Milan Mendez & Isabella Posa
Pro-Am Salsa Freestyle
🥇 1st – Ella Wilson & Alistair Payne
🥈 2nd – Isabella Posa & Arlo Pizzey
🥉 3rd – Faafeu Kapeneta & Tayla Malyon
Kizomba Freestyle
🥈 2nd – Milan Mendez & Isabella Posa
🥉 3rd – Mike Lord & Tayla Malyon
🎲 Jack & Jill
Salsa Open – Leaders
🥈 2nd – Alistair Payne
Salsa Open – Followers
🥈 2nd – Tayla Malyon
🥉 3rd – Bridget Trevena
Salsa Amateur – Leaders
🥇 1st – Milan Mendez
🥈 2nd – Faafeu Kapeneta
Salsa Amateur – Followers
🥇 1st – Isabella Posa
🥉 3rd Equal – Nana Heng
🥉 3rd Equal – Tanesha Simeon
Bachata Amateur – Leaders
🥉 3rd – Milan Mendez
Bachata Amateur – Followers
🥈 2nd – Isabella Posa
🥉 3rd Equal – Nana Heng
🇨🇾 From Cyprus to New Zealand
For our students here in Cyprus, these results also give you a little insight into the background behind Salsa Latina and your teachers, Reuben & Miléna.
Before launching Salsa Latina Cyprus, they spent many years building dancers, teams and competitors in New Zealand, creating choreography and developing a structured Salsa and Bachata teaching system.
Although Cyprus is now home, that connection with New Zealand continues.
Technology makes it possible to create, coach and develop from Cyprus, but nothing replaces being on the floor together. That's why their recent month in New Zealand was so valuable — getting back into the studio with the teams, working through the details and helping prepare everyone for competition.
To then see both the Salsa and Bachata teams take 1st place, the ladies Salsa team take 2nd place, and so many Salsa Latina dancers achieve podium results across the individual and partner divisions made all that work worthwhile. ❤️
Reuben & Miléna are incredibly proud of everyone who stepped onto the competition floor and represented Salsa Latina.
For the NZ crew, it's now time for a well-earned rest and recovery before attention turns towards the next challenge…
Brisbane Salsa Solo (World Competition) ! 🇦🇺🔥
And here in Cyprus, we're back on the dance floor in Limassol, bringing that same experience, training and passion into the growing Salsa Latina Cyprus community. 🇨🇾💃🕺
Reuben & Miléna
Salsa Latina Cyprus
*independant
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