On the Other Side of the World, One Step Short

I woke up before seven this morning and watched the final of Tango Escenario—the choreographed category—at the Tango World Championship in Buenos Aires.

Seventeen couples had made it through to the final. Together with the continental champions, twenty couples competed in all.

Watching from the beginning, I enjoyed seeing the different qualities of each couple. But after several performances, I have to admit that my concentration began to fade.

Diego and Aldana finally appeared around sixth or seventh in the order.

The online stream kept cutting out, so I could not see their performance clearly. Compared with the semifinal, they seemed a little stiff, perhaps because of the pressure.

Even so, their choreography and performance were outstanding. I thought they would win.

After all the couples had danced, the results were announced.

It may sound strange to say “as expected,” but Diego and Aldana’s names had not been called by the time the announcement reached second place. Most of the audience probably thought they could only be first or second.

Just as I was thinking that, their names were called for second place.

Honestly, I was disappointed.

They had danced four times: the qualifying round, quarterfinal, semifinal, and final. Of those four performances, the final did seem the stiffest and the least convincing.

Perhaps the accumulated fatigue had affected them. Traveling from summer in Asia to winter in Buenos Aires, on the other side of the world, may also have played a part.

Still, they have been going through this kind of competition for about five years. They should be used to the long journey and the change in climate by now.

I exchanged messages with some tango friends and talked about the result. It was difficult for us to accept, but it must have been even harder for Diego and Aldana.

Technically, they were far ahead of the others.

They can perform even the most difficult steps with ease. This time, they deliberately held them back and relied instead on their presence, performance, and very simple dancing.

Even in Tango Escenario, where technical skill is highly valued, everyone thought they could win that way.

But they fell just short.

After the winning couple was announced, Aldana looked as though she might cry.

Of course, the cameras were still rolling. She quickly regained her composure.

For this single moment, they must spend another year training and then travel for around forty hours to reach the other side of the world.

If they decide to compete again next year, another year begins.

It is not a simple thing.