Denys Drozdyuk dances to stardom

[attach]2758[/attach]Bloor West has a dance star to call its own.

Ukrainian-born Denys Drozdyuk was crowned king of So You Think You Can Dance Canada’s third season on Oct. 24, winning the title of Canada’s Favourite Dancer, $100,000 and a Mazda 2 car.

The 25-year-old ballroom dancer beat out finalists Amanda Cleghorn, Jeff Mortensen, and Janick Arseneau to win the top honour.

A three-time winner of world championship titles in ballroom, Drozdyuk, who immigrated to Canada when he was 12, studied dance at the prestigious Juilliard in New York City and later at New York University.

Drozdyuk cried out and wiped away tears after the show’s host Leah Miller announced he had won at the show’s two-hour finale at the Shoreline Studios in the Port Lands.

The reality that he had won still hadn’t sunk in when he spoke with the media after his win.

Dressed in a crisp suit, Drozdyuk focused on his career after the CTV show, saying he never wants stop learning, and will continue to push himself to reach new goals in the world of dance.

During the finale, guest judge and recording artist Blake McGrath asked Drozdyuk to join him on tour to promote McGrath’s debut album, Time to Move, which is set to release Nov. 2.

Drozdyuk has also trained in latin, contemporary, ballet, afro-latin, jazz, flamenco, and tap.

Drozdyuk, who has danced all over the world including Italy, Singapore, Russia and Austria, has collaborated with top choreographers including Peter Maxwell, Ruud Vermej, Allan Tornsberg and Hanz-Rheinhard Galke.

SYTYCD Canada Judge Jean Marc Genereux forsees a bright future for Drozdyuk.

“The man came down here with a plan, with a game, with a mission, and c’mon, he was a force to be reckoned with,” Genereux said after the results were announced. “So amazing. I love this kid.”