St Leo’s girl qualifies for World Irish Dance Championships
St Leo's College student Lauryn Coogan, who hopes to pursue a professional career in Irish dancing when she turns 18
A STUDENT from St Leo’s College, Carlow will take part in next year’s World Irish Dance Championships. The event takes place in Dublin from 13-20 April.
Lauryn Coogan from Arles booked her slot at the ‘Worlds’ by finishing fourth in the recent Irish championships.
The16-year-old trains five to seven days a week and has a list of notable achievements under her belt.
Lauryn dances for the Curley Brennan Irish Dance School in Newbridge, which was part of the original Riverdance performance at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1994.
A former Leinster champion and ranked 13th in the world at the Montreal World Irish Dancing Championships last year, Lauryn has also achieved two top-ten finishes at the British championships.
At the age of six, Lauryn was enthralled when she saw Riverdance for the first time. Back then, she said her wish was to perform with the world-famous troupe. And earlier this year, her dream came through when Anna Mae Fitzpatrick, one of the principal dancers in Riverdance, conferred Lauryn with a personal award and picked her to perform with Riverdance. Lauryn said that she hopes to tour with the theatrical show when she turns 18.
However, dancing comes with major costs for activities such as classes, physio, gym and costumes, and Lauryn is on the lookout for a sponsor to continue competing at world-class level.
To find out more about Lauryn, email shellycoogan@gmail.com or phone 086 8474752.
