HIP-HOP DANCE WORLD CHAMPION - JAKUB GRĘDA
The GIFT STAR company is the official sponsor of one of the most talented dancers in Poland.
JAKUB GRĘDA'S MOST IMPORTANT ACHIEVEMENTS:
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5 times World Champion (Bremerhaven 2000, Barcelona 2009, Nagykanizsa 2010)
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3 times 2nd World Vice-Champion (Castglioncello 2011, Eastbourne 2012, Nagykanizsa 2013)
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A performance at the Eurovision for Young Dancers as the Polish representative (Amsterdam 2003)
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14 times Champion of Poland
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Special Award of the Minister of Culture and Art (Olsztyn 1997)
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Award of the Minister of Science and Higher Education for remarkable achievements in dancing (Gdańsk 2011)
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Award for outstanding achievements in dancing from the Marshal of the Province of Warmia and Mazury (Olsztyn 2009, 2010, 2012)
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3 times winner of Wirująca Strefa (Twisting Zone) (Łomża 2003, 2004)
The first documented dance of 'Grędziu' dates to 1992. As one of few pre-school pupils, instead of pretending to be an elephant or arrhythmically waving with hands he preferred freestyle and joined Klub Miłośnika Tańca "TAN" (a club for dance enthusiasts) in Nidzica (run by Andrzej Grażula). He entered his first competitions already in 1994, and in 1996 (after joining PZTS) he became the unofficial champion of Poland for the first time. Why unofficial? Since he was too young to compete, yet it did not prevent him from winning. It was the beginning of numerous successes and in 2000, after a few fruitful years, he tried his hand in the Polish Dance Federation (IDO) (under the eye of Rafał Ziółkowski) for the first time. Result: Grędziu was the first Pole in history to win World Championships in hip-hop (for children up to 11 years old)! The winning streak kept going not only during federation competitions: in 2003 and 2004 he won the Wirująca Strefa (Twisting Zone), and in 2000 he was spotted at Rytm Ulicy (Rhythm of the Street) event in Gniezno.
In 2003, as the first "hip hopper", he represented our country during the Eurovision in Amsterdam. Although it was more of a ballet and modern dancing contest, Grędziu remembers it as a distinction: "I was chosen even though hip-hop was not so popular in Poland!" It was a sign that people remembered about a boy who had appeared not only on many competitions or shows, but also in various television programmes (MDM, Teleranek, 5-10-15, Kawa czy Herbata etc.).
Unfortunately, as people became more and more interested in hip-hop in Poland, its quality got worse and worse. Displeased with this situation, in 2004 Grędziu decided to say goodbye to "professional" dancing career and move with his mat to the street and courtyards of his home town. "We didn't actually 'street dance'. We were just doing "nines" on frozen asphalt, headspins on cardboards spread on grass, and jumping on sandy hills catching fresh air etc.", explains Grędziu. He was still seeking knowledge and his own craze. Luckily, the latter came to him in 2007 through Natalia who talked him into coming back to trainings.
In 2010, after two-year and extremely intense Internet communication, Grędziu joined DeepSide Cru, and together with the rest of his crazy team he spreads the idea of 5 elements!
READ MORE INFORMATION ON OFFICIAL SITE: www.gredziu.pl