★ Ginga Boo UK – UK Open Competition Rules 2025 ★

General Information

The National Dance Championship is a Kizomba and Urban Kiz competition open to all UK dancers (Teachers, Social dancers, Students). Regional qualifying heats across the UK will send winners to compete in the National Grand Final during Criola London, 27th September 2025 and to go compete to Olympiads of Kizomba In Paris/ France November 2025.

In preparation for the France Grand Final on November 2025, we have made some exciting adjustments to our rules. We kindly ask all participants to read them carefully. Our goal is to showcase the competitors’ exceptional dancing skills and their ability to beautifully adapt to a variety of musical tempos across different categories.

The competition showcases creativity and new talent at all levels. Grand Final Criola London Saturday 27th September 2025

UK Regional Qualification & National London Final

Competitor Rules

Dancers must be 18 + years old (at the time of the competition)
Regional qualifier winners advance to London Grand Final
Partners cannot change once qualified for the Grand Final
Dancers can enter multiple regional qualifiers
Couples can compete in other categories during competition
Appearance order randomly determined
Final competition date Saturday 27th September 2025
Competitors cannot judge
Travel/accommodations self-funded

Additional Rules

£25 registration fee per competitor / £50 per couple to advance to London Grand final
Must buy full pass for Criola London All dayer for the final (The organisation will apply a discount)
Must present signed original rules before competing (or via email)
Props/decorations allowed if placed/removed by couple
Couples responsible for own costumes, hair, makeup
Different outfits required for Qualifier and Grand final
No brand/product use during performances
The organisation is not responsible for lost/stolen items
Dancers responsible for any venue damage/injury
A minimum of 6 couples (3 Kizomba, 3 Urban Kiz) is required for the London Grand final.

Ginga Boo UK retains rights to all audio/videos of performances for promotion purposes.

Regional Qualifying

1 minute 30 seconds improvisation in Kizomba or Urban Kiz depending on the style
Music chosen by organisers / main Djs (Music will not be played from the beginning)
The music selection will be shared at the button of this page when it is ready
Matching outfits required
1-4 couples advance from each regional
Exception for GBKF UK 6-9th June 2025 (more will be allowed to advance to the Grand final)
Wildcard 1 couple may be selected (At the judge’s discretion)
Confirm participation to regional 10 minutes before start
No registration fees required to enter any regionals competition

Jack & Jill Couple Match Kizomba & Urban Kiz Competition to enter the UK qualifiers as a couple

- Individuals enter without partners
- Leaders and followers randomly paired
- Test spontaneous dancing skills with new partner
- Luck of the draw format
- Limited partner switches during preliminaries
- Judges decide who to couple up on spot
- Couples compete as a pair in the UK Qualifiers in the city they are competing on the same day.

Grand Final

The National Championship London Final will consist of two parts:

In preparation for the France Olympiads of Kizomba on November 2025, we have made some exciting adjustments to our rules. We kindly ask all participants to read them carefully. Our goal is to showcase the competitors’ exceptional dancing skills and their ability to beautifully adapt to a variety of musical tempos across different categories.

Part 1 – 2 Improvisation Rounds

2 rounds * 1 min 15 secs improvisation of Kizomba AND Ghetto Zouk ***
2 rounds * 1 min 15 secs improvisation of Urban Kiz AND Ghetto Zouk ***
DJ selects songs randomly by category
Couples must improvise to songs selected on the spot by the Dj
15 secs Prelude of the song (competitors to hear the song before to start dancing)

For clarity in the Kizomba, Urban Kiz, and Ghetto Zouk categories, here are a few examples:

*** Kizomba

Puto Português – Rainha https://on.soundcloud.com/ruPTfZXo91LMpRLaA

Ceia by Nikila de Sousa https://on.soundcloud.com/VMEyyJf4duyixD2BA

Amor Perdido by Clarah Helen https://on.soundcloud.com/EEaDxkXXjyQJgZTH6

*** Urban Kiz

X-Vybz Dj Snake (feat. Puto X) https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=qreVqpD1tCk

PANIC DJ Charley Raymdtc https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=RAQrxupCMlQ

BDSC (prod by Puto X) DEEJAY DIABLO https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=TnJLWtoJ58E

*** Ghetto Zouk

A Toa – Chelsea Dinorah https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=uPBHq3dgKSE

Tou Fora – Dj Nao https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=_gqI4NO5xec

Chega Mais – Nice life https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=qdvx8EvnW70

Part 2 – Choreography / Show

Kizomba Couple category 1 min choreography Mandatory Kizomba/ Semba music style (roughly 50/50)
Urban Kiz Couple category 1 min choreography Mandatory Urban Kiz/ Ghetto Zouk music style (roughly 50/50)
10 seconds maximum within the 1-minute performance for introduction (slow start/entrance)
Couples provide a 1-minute total soundtrack of 2 music styles (0.5 seconds plus or minus is allowed in the music mix)

Couple Rules

Keep the music within 1 minutes time limit (0.5 seconds plus or minus is allowed in the music mix)
No repeating previous choreography or using live music
Penalties for suspected repetition (Judges to decide)
Improvise to unknown music provided
Avoid repeat moves in improv, tricks allowed
No communication with partner, audience, or judges (don’t sing along)
Notify organisers immediately of any floor/audio issues
Keep same competitor numbers throughout

Music Rules

Couples solely responsible for choreography and soundtrack
Must submit soundtrack to Ginga Boo UK for approval beforehand by 10th August 2025 by 8pm
Deliver by email to DJ before the competition latest 5th September 2025 by 8pm
Late or incorrect format leads to disqualification, barring exceptional circumstance
Couples should have soundtrack copy as backup
Non-compliant music leads to disqualification

Jury Rules

3 judges for regional qualifiers | GBKF UK 5 judges
5-7 judges for national final in London
Judges are teachers, performers, DJs and past competition winners
Regional judges chosen jointly
Ginga Boo UK selects final judges
The jury’s decisions are final. Disrespect towards judges or organisers is prohibited.
No direct communication between judges and couples. All channels of communication must be made via the organisers or Ginga Boo UK.

Judge Ethics

Judge solely on event performance
No influence from prior knowledge of couples’ skills
No influence from personal relationships
Maintain neutral stance, no time warnings
No expressing irony, disgust, laughter etc.
Focus on respect for competitors

Judging Criteria

Ginga Boo UK provides criteria docs for consistent judging.

Technical Ability – movement mastery and execution
Creativity/Originality – new and different movements
Rhythm/Interpretation – timing and fluidity
Visual Presentation – hair, costumes, makeup
Choreography/Improvisation – complexity, evolution, synchronisation

Championship Prizes

Winning couple crowned UK Open Kizomba Champions or UK Open Urban Kiz Champions 2025
Champions win 1st place:
- Kizomba Couple: £1,200
- Urban Kiz Couple: £1,200
*£1,200 for Flights or Trains to Paris from UK + Hotel + Breakfast in Paris (Booking by the organisation budget of £700 for 2 people) + Cash prize £500
Champions of each category advance to Olympiad of Kizomba Quarter- finals (France/ Paris)

Champions 1st / 2nd / 3rd receive a medal
Top 3 couples will perform their shows at UK events (winners will be required to extend their show/choreography to 2.5 minutes to perform across the UK)
2nd & 3rd couple wins FREE pass to GBKF UK June 2026

(*P.S.: If the 1st place couple winners cannot attend in Paris, the 2nd place winners will be asked to attend instead)

Penalty Guidelines

Non-compliance leads to point reduction or disqualification
May be barred from current competition and removed from rankings
Barred period ranges from 1 month to 1 year
Weight of penalty decided by disciplinary committee (judges + organisers)

Registration

Rules may be modified if communicated 10+ days in advance via our website www.gingaboo.com
To enter, email admin@gingaboo.com with:
Full name – Dance category – Desired city
We will send hard copy rules to sign
Contact us if you do not have a dance partner, we can try to help you
Must read and accept rules fully to participate
Signing indicates agreement to follow competition rules