Langlees’ Abbey (16) set to dance for Scotland

Abbey McEnaney, from Langlees, was one of the select few chosen from hundreds of dancers at the auditions recently, and she will now dance in Scotland’s jazz and pom teams.

The 16-year-old currently dances as part of Elite Beat Cheer and Dance, which is run by her mum Donna, and she’s the first dancer from the group to compete at this national level.

Donna said: “Abbey has been dancing since she was two.

“She does jazz, lyrical, pom dance and cheerleading.

“She has worked really hard for this.

“She was selected from hundreds of applicants from all over Scotland and she’s on the jazz and pom teams.

“She will now train with the national team and go with them to the World Championships in Orlando in April and then to the European Championships in Verona in July.

“We’re over the moon and we’re still in shock as so many people go for this.

“One hundred auditioned for the jazz team alone and there’s only 16 to 18 picked for the team.

“We’re just a small group from Falkirk, so for her to be selected for the team is a huge achievement and we’re extremely proud of her.”

But the hard work for Abbey is not over, she will spend one day a week training for Team Scotland in Clydebank with the rest of the team, as well as continuing her dancing with Elite Beat.

“She dances seven days a week,” explains Donna, who runs ID Dancewear in Falkirk’s Callendar Square.

“She helps coach the younger teams with me.

“She works with me in the shop and she’s currently doing her dance teaching qualifications.

“Dancing is what she does, she lives and breathes it.”

And the promise of dancing in international competitions also brings with it some other challenges too.

Donna added: “There’s now loads of fundraising to do to help pay for her to travel and compete.

“She’ll be doing things like bag packs and there’s a Team Scotland ball in March that we’ll be looking for raffle prizes for and selling tickets for.

“It’s an expensive trip, but it will be an amazing experience for her.”