Young Japanese dancers performed well at this year's Youth America Grand Prix, one of the world's foremost international ballet competitions for junior dancers, the results of which were announced in Tampa, Fla., on Sunday local time.
Shinji Mitoma, 11, from Yokohama won first prize in the classical dance category for boys in the pre-competitive age division for children who were aged 9 to 11 as of Jan. 1 this year, the division for the youngest competitors in the event.
In the same division, Leon Yusei Sai, 12, who lives in the United States, won second place in both the classical and contemporary ballet categories for boys; Anne Takahashi, 11, from Saitama placed second in the classical dance category for girls; and Kako Nakata, 11, from Chiba placed third in the contemporary dance category for girls.
