Hundreds of ballerinas set ‘en pointe’ world record in spectacular display

18 April 2024, 12:25 | Updated: 18 April 2024, 12:58

Hundreds of ballerinas gathered in a New York hotel for a tutu-attired Guinness World Record attempt.

More than 350 young ballerinas sashayed their way into a New York hotel foyer on Wednesday, to take part in a mass world record dance attempt.

The event was organised by Youth America Grand Prix, which arranged for 353 young ballet dancers to come together at New York’s Plaza Hotel in Manhattan in an effort to break the Guinness World Record for ‘Most Ballet Dancers En Pointe Simultaneously’.

The previous record held was 306 dancers. The feat requires all participating ballerinas to remain on their toes for a full minute in order to successfully set the new record.

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The challenging art form sees a ballerina support their entire body weight whilst standing on the very tips of their toes. Proper pointe technique can take years to master, and requires plenty of strength and conditioning training to keep a dancer’s feet and ankles healthy.

An official representative of the Guinness World Records attended the event to adjudicate, and announced to the room of excited young dancers that their attempt had been successful.

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“I screamed and I clapped,” 13-year-old ballerina Amanda Toledo told the New York Post. “I was in shock! I’m feeling proud.”

The teenage dancers hailed from across the United States, from New York to Idaho, and even included some international participants from Japan, China, Germany and Portugal.