Three Irish dancers from Bellshill win big at the World Championships

Laura Davidson, 25, Declan McLaughlin, 22, and 10-year-old Oscar Donnelly took part in the 2022 World Irish Dancing Championships in Belfast in April – and exceeded all their expectations.

Laura battled in a group of 154 Senior Ladies to take home fourth prize, Declan finished second in Senior Men’s – his best result yet – and Oscar earned first prize in his group of age 10-11 boys.

L-R: Declan McLaughlin, Oscar Donnelly, Laura Davidson.

Oscar has been dancing for eight years, and this was his first World Championships. While he struggles to explain the range of expressions and emotions he feels, he does truly feel that it’s not the winning that matters.

He said: “I feel like it’s more amazing that I was there, and I took part and competed in it rather than winning.

“I feel like being there is a bigger thing and winning is a bonus. Being there and dancing at the World Championships is probably the biggest thing that has happened for me.

“I’ve been waiting to dance in the worlds since I was two.”

Oscar Donnelly.

Irish dancing holds a special place in Declan’s heart, as his family are from Derry and his nana danced in the worlds years before him.

Speaking of his experience at the competition, he said: “It was amazing, especially after Covid. Laura and I have competed in the Worlds many times before, and I’ve been top five since I was 15, so it was a big thing to get back and do what we love at the World Championships because it is the biggest event for Irish dancing.

“It was my first year in Senior Men’s, so it was a lot harder with a lot of other World Champions who have won before, so to achieve my best result yet is amazing.”

Declan McLaughlin

Laura’s entire family are dancers and she felt it was “natural” for her to follow in their footsteps, and now has 20 years of experience behind her.

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She said: “I have been dancing for a long time, but we missed it during Covid. We did a few classes on Zoom and out in the car park hail, rain, or shine, but we missed the two years because of that.”

Laura was delighted with her result, especially as dancers in the Senior Ladies category have to go through a rigorous two-day process where they are whittled down to the best of the best.

Laura Davidson.

She said: “I came fourth of 154 Senior Ladies and that was my first year because of the break and it was a really big deal. My highest was in 2018 and 2019 when I came 13th both years.

“They called it out in reverse order from 52nd place and by the time they got to the top 10 I was hysterical. I couldn’t believe it, we worked so hard and couldn’t wait to see the results.”

While the Sharon Taylor Irish Dance Academy now has three huge new trophies to boast, the dancers are adamant that it’s the dancing that matters to them.

Laura said: “We’ll keep working away and see how we do next year. I always want to dance my best – the results are the cherry on top but as long as I go out and do my absolute best.”

One person beaming with pride for the trio is their dedicated teacher, Sharon Taylor.

Sharon said: “I’m extremely proud. They trained so hard, and put so many hours in. Irish dancing is an art form, but it’s also become a sport and they train like Olympic athletes.”

Sharon Taylor. Photo by Colin Mearns

Speaking of her reaction when she found out their results, Sharon added: “I was at the airport when Laura’s results came through and we were all crying, everyone was looking at us in the departure lounge.

“We knew Oscar had a good chance, and Declan has been on the podium at the World Championships every year.

“I see more of those kids than they see their parents. I spend so much time in the studio with them and I laugh at Oscar when he’s in for a lesson and he’ll say, ‘do I have to go back to school, can I not stay here and dance all day?’”

While the worlds are over for another year, the dancers are not slowing down.

Already at the top in his first competition, Oscar only wants to stay there. He also wants to follow in the footsteps of his hero, Irish dancer Michael Flatley.

He said: “I am inspired by Michael Flatley, he’s the biggest inspiration for everyone and he’s best in the world I would say. He dances in Lord of the Dance.

“A big dream would be to be in a show like Lord of the Dance and travel all around the world.”

Meanwhile, Declan is already there, as he is packing his bags and heading to Budapest to work on a month-long project with none other than Michael Flatley.

Speaking of how he was scouted, Declan said: “I received a message on Instagram from one of the people in the project. I work in Tesco, so I was out picking orders when I opened it and I was like, oh my god. I was just freaking out in the yoghurt aisle.”

After this exciting opportunity, Declan plans to compete at the 2023 worlds in Montreal before sitting his teachers’ exam.

Teaching is a passion for Laura too, who already assists Sharon with some of the younger classes.

She said: “At the moment I’m not too interested in joining a show – I’m too much of a homebird.

“I help teach in the class a lot as an assistant to Sharon, so I’ll continue to do that, but I’ve not got a timeframe.”

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While they all have slightly different goals in their pipeline, the three champions agree on one thing: none of it would be possible without their teacher.

Laura said: “Sharon works very hard and she’s literally in here seven days a week. She sees more of us than she does our family. If she’s not in the studio with us, she’s texting us about her next great idea for steps.

“I can’t see how she could work any harder, or how any teacher could work harder.”

Declan added: “I wouldn’t be the dancer I am if it wasn’t for Sharon.

“There are so many schools throughout the world and we’re just a wee school in Bellshill and we ended up getting three globes. It’s mad.”