Over two months ago, 10 Ballarat community members put themselves forward for a dance challenge to raise money for The Ballarat Foundation.
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They are now two weeks away from gracing the stage, having put their minds and bodies to the test.
Sovereign Radiology sonographer Randhir Sewgolam spoke with The Courier about how far he had come over the past eight weeks.
"We have put in a lot of hard work over the last two months," he said.
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"I am leaving here, after this competition, with many more skills than I had coming into it.
"Not just dancing, but using social media, organising events, knowing what is happening in our schools and being aware of what is happening in our community locally."
Mr Sewgolam and his dance partner and Sovereign Radiology co-principal Alicia Wang Sheludko are working on fine-turning their performance so it is stage-ready.
There has been a big learning curve for Mr Sewgolam, who has not danced previously.
"Getting on the toes and getting off the feet has been challenging," he said.
"I thought dancing was being flat on your feet but it is not.
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"I could not balance on my toes when I started and I have been doing 50 calf raises in the morning and 50 in the evening to help.
"It is a big difference from two months ago."
Dr Wang Sheludko said Mr Sewgolam had been working hard to prepare for the final event.
"He is obviously very committed and he also listens really well too."
Last year Dr Wang Sheludko participated in the competition as a star, she has since continued her dancing lessons and even won a national ballroom competition.
She said she was excited to be taking on another dancing challenge.
"The dancing part is the part that I really have loved," Dr Wang Sheludko said.
"I have just discovered this new passion that I did not know about prior to last year."
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Dr Wang Sheludko said she thought very highly of Shelley Ross from The Dance Studio who volunteers hours of her time to organise lessons and costumes.
"She is just amazing in that she brings everyone together for this and shows her passion and skills as a teacher," she said.
"She can convert people who have never danced before to become dancers in such a short period of time."
Mr Sewgolam will be holding a talent show fundraiser on Sunday at ArtHALL Learmonth to raise money for the Ballarat Foundation.
Audience tickets are still available. More info: https://bit.ly/DWOSTalentShow
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