Craig and Evgeniya Shaw have been dancing together since 2010. Based in the UK they compete in a number of styles including Professional Ballroom, American Smooth and Classic Showdance. They are the current British and World Classic Showdance Champions, former European finalists and five time British Professional National Ballroom vice-champions.
Career Highlights
Representing Great Britain at World and European Championships. Reaching European Professional Ballroom final and becoming British and World Champions.
Recent Competitions
• Current World Professional Classic Showdance Champions • Current British Professional Classic Showdance Champions • World Professional Semifinalists and European Professional Finalists • All England Champions and UK Rising Star Finalists • British Open Professional American Smooth Semifinalists
Biography
Evgeniya is from Omsk in Siberia. She starting dancing at 9 years old, competing in 10 dance, gaining Junior, Youth and Amateur 10 dance Champion titles. She moved to Moscow at the age of 16 to study, gaining both her Bachelors and Masters degree at Moscow State University. At the same time her dance training intensified and she made both Amateur World and International finals.
Throughout her career, Evgeniya has always had a keen eye for fashion and enjoys designing her ‘image’ and her distinctive ‘look’ on the dance floor. Evgeniya’s approach is a whole concept, from head to toe and the shoes are as important as the dress. So when Freed offered her the opportunity to design her own shoe she took full advantage.
‘My dance shoe is beautiful as well as practical, it’s made exquisitely allowing me to feel and interpret the music through my feet’.
Craig is from Liverpool, England and started dancing at the age of 12 competing successfully in Junior, Under 21 and Amateur competitions. In 2001 Craig moved to the USA to dance where he quickly achieved success, becoming North American Champion, representing the USA at the World Championships on several occasions and teaching at Princeton and Harvard University. Craig turned Professional in 2008 and returned to the UK competing, teaching and gaining his Licentiate with the UKA before meeting Evgeniya at a UK Training Camp in 2009. However, it was another year before they got together and they quickly gained a number of titles and formed their first Dance Company together.
They married in 2012 and in 2014 they welcomed their daughter, Annabelle. Although they lead busy lives as dance professionals and as parents Annabelle clearly provides the motivation behind their continuous improvement as they recently became World Champions.
‘To be fair, some people thought we were scaling back on our competitive career but the opposite was true. We had the support of our families and we find our focus is sharper now because we haven’t time to waste. Freed’s consistent quality enables us to give our very best each time we step on the dancefloor.’ Craig has worn Freed shoes since he started dancing at the age of 12.
‘Freed have supported me for over 20 years and I still get a great feeling when I put on a new pair of shoes – I can express myself and anything is possible’.
Evgeniya wears the Evgeniya shoe and Craig wears the Flexifit shoe.
Visit their website www.craigevgeniya.com and their Facebook page Craig and Evgeniya Shaw
