Orlando Dominates World Fireknife Championships for 3rd Year in a Row with New Champion Named
La'ie – Last year's champion may have had to sit out due to his duel win, but Orlando was still represented when Andrew "Umi" Sexton took the title of World's Best at the Polynesian Cultural Center's 15th Annual World Fireknife Championships. This is the third year Orlando took the top title. The duet champions named on the first night of competition this year were also from Orlando with 2006 champions Mikaele Oloa and junior champion Viavia "V.J." Timualu.
The 15th anniversary master's competition was extremely tough with Joseph Cadousteau of Papeete, Tahiti placing second and former world champion Alexander "Lefolasa" Galeai of Laie placing third.
"I started knife dancing when I was 3 with my dad and it's become my obsession," said Sexton, who is originally from Waianae, but is now the lead fireknife dancer for Walt Disney World. "It's so awesome to be here and competing with all of these great performers. The sport's really expanding and it's such an honor to take the title this year and represent my culture."
The scores for the win came from a combined tally from the 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. Horizons evening shows. In the first show, the competitors really put each other to the test with high-energy routines. The second show narrowed the margin even more with all three competitors fighting for each point. And it all came down to speed, skill and endurance, with Sexton holding his own over the other competitors.
Each winner in the World Fireknife Championships received a check and other gifts including a specially made trophy fireknife. First place received $4,000, second place earned $2,000 and third place collected $1,000.
Sponsored by Cirque du Soleil, Electric Pencil, Hawaiian Airlines, Henry S. Mataalii & Company, Galumalemana Lester W.B. Moore, Turtle Bay Resort and the PCC, the annual competition drew nearly 10,000 spectators over the course of four days from around the world.
Visit the PCC website at www.polynesia.com for all of the results of the 15th Annual World Fireknife Dance Competition and to purchase DVD highlights of the weekend's festivities./p>
Since its beginning in 1963, the Polynesian Cultural Center has entertained more than 33 million visitors by preserving the spirit, culture and people of Polynesia. This week, all guests were invited to attend the Fireknife Competition and learn about the people and culture of Samoa through various other activities including the annual Samoan Arts Festival held on Saturday morning in the PCC's Pacific Theater.
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