McGough Academy World Championship 2022 Press Release

McGough Academy Irish Dance Champions, Annemarie Nugent (U13), Brendan Richmond (U13), Caitlin Linehan (U14), Christina Wiltz (U15), Ilizabeth Saboe (U17), and Owen Richmond (U17) represented the USA at the 50th Anniversary World Championships in Belfast last month. This was the first world championship for CLRG since the Covid-19 pandemic shutdown. Additional McGough Academy World Qualifiers, Ryan McNeil (U12), Lizzie Shacklett (U14), Zali Williams (U19), and Chloe Williams (U22) graciously supported the McGough team from the USA side and unfortunately could not make the trip this year.

Annemarie Nugent represented the McGough Academy for the first time at the World Championships as a soloist! Annemarie achieved a top goal of many dancers, to recall into the finals at the World Championships. This is an outstanding achievement to place amongst the top in your age group globally as a Recall Medalist! Annemarie was 3rd at the 2021 Mid-Atlantic Region Oireachtas, a 3X Oireachtas Champion, and NAIDC National Champion. Congratulations, Annemarie!

Like Annemarie, Brendan Richmond graced the World stage for the first time and danced his heart out! He is the 2021-2022 Mid-Atlantic Region Oireachtas Champion and an Open Champion in Irish dance. He also achieved Top 10 at the US Nationals last summer in Phoenix, AZ. Given the pandemic, Brendan and Annemarie had to wait two years to perform on the stage! Brendan has been dancing at the McGough Academy for 8 years and he is back in the studio working hard to achieve his goal of earning a world medal in the future! Congratulations, Brendan!

Caitlin Linehan, like Brendan and Annemarie, stepped on her first world championship stage as a soloist! Caitlin has ranked in the Top 5 at the Mid-Atlantic Region Oireachtas and achieved the level of an Open Champion! Caitlin returned to Irish dance during the pandemic to finish out her Irish dance career with her goal of dancing a solo performance at the World Championships. Unfortunately, Caitlin has been battling a difficult dancer injury, but you never know, she may come back for a team which is her favorite part of Irish dance! Congratulations, Caitlin!

Christina Wiltz entered the World stage for the 3rd time. Christina is the current US National Champion, with additional past titles 3X Oireachtas Champion, NAIDC National Champion, and Irish Open Champion. She was able to achieve her lifetime goal of bringing home a globe with 5TH Overall at the World Championships and Top North American! The teaching team is delighted with Christina’s hard work to jump 23 spots into the Top 5! This is Christina’s 2nd World Medal, and she is currently ranked in the Top 2% of her age group globally. Congratulations, Christina!

Ilizabeth Saboe represented the McGough Academy as a soloist for the 2nd time at the World Championships! Ilizabeth is the current US National Champion and Mid-Atlantic Region Oireachtas Champion for the 2021-2022 year. She worked to achieve her goal of bringing home a World Medal, which is a ranking in the top 10% of the overall World Championship. Ilizabeth placed 13th Overall and 5th in North America, with a 20 placement jump from her last World Championship in 2019, and landed in the top 7% of her age group globally. The team is so proud of this great achievement. Congratulations, Ilizabeth!

Owen Richmond, like Ilizabeth, represented the McGough Academy as a soloist for the 2nd time on the World stage! He has consistently ranked Top 5 in the Mid-Atlantic Region Oireachtas, with his best finish in 2021 in 3rd place! Owen is a very talented film director in high school and balanced both dancing and film in his spare time from his schoolwork. Owen has nursed an injury to be able to make it to the World stage this past month. His tenacity has made the team very proud! While he is rehabbing now, we hope to see him back up on stage very soon! Congratulations, Owen!

The next major event for the McGough World Qualifiers and McGough Open Champions is the NAIDC Championships in Montreal, Canada in July 2022! We wish everyone the best of luck with their next round of training for this World Qualifying event! You will get to see these amazing dancers perform at our upcoming McGough Academy Recital on Saturday, June 25th at The Agnes Irwin School in Pennsylvania!

The McGough Academy is a T.C.R.G./A.D.C.R.G. Certified Irish Dance Teaching Academy with CLRG and celebrates its 10th Anniversary this year. It is known as a high-quality dance academy that is dedicated to the future of the dancers, on and off the stage. With four locations in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Puerto Rico, we are conveniently located near the NYC, Philly, DC, and San Juan Metropolitan areas. The McGough Academy provides each dancer with an environment where you can feel comfortable and trust the staff to help you become the best dancer and person possible. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the McGough Academy offers both digital and in-person programs aimed at helping you achieve your individual goals.