Ballroom dancing has become more than just a popular Israeli pastime. It's now a major sport, bringing Israel fame and glory in the international arena.

In late April, Israeli dance partners Liana Odikadze of Ashdod and Artyom Liaskovsky of Petach Tikva won the World Dance Sport Federation’s under-21 international competition for Latin dances in Moldova, besting about 80 other couples. On June 13, the Ballroom Dancing World Cup Competition took place in Ashdod. An Israeli couple came in second place in the over-21 Latin dance competition, while another Israeli couple came in fifth in European-style dancing.

“When I arrived in Israel from Russia in 1991, there was nothing here,” Galina Shustin told Al-Monitor. She is now the director of the Ballroom Dancing Academy in Ashdod and the founder of the municipal dance company. “I went to local schools, gave a few sample lessons, and people started coming. I now have about 200 students, ranging in age from four to adult.”

Shustin’s daughter Elena, a professional dancer, heads a troupe of disabled dancers in the city. Since Shustin first arrived, several other dance schools have opened in Ashdod, and with the support of the municipality, the city has become a dance powerhouse. Shustin says that there are now plans to expand another project in the city to incorporate dance classes in the local public schools. She estimates that there are several thousand ballroom dancers in the different Israeli dancing schools.