Malle 2017: 10 things to know

It is exactly 100 days until the 2017 World Para Dance Sport Championships get underway. Here’s what you need to know about one of Para sport’s most eye-catching events.

1. Malle, located about 70km northeast of Brussels, Belgium, will host the competition from 20-23 October.

2. It is the first time that Belgium has hosted the World Championships.

3. It will be the world’s biggest gather of Para dancers, with around 150 athletes from 25 countries expected to compete.

4. The last World Championships were in 2015 in Rome, Italy.

5. Belgium’s Sofie Cox is expected to be the big home favourite. She is aiming for her first World Championship medal, and is likely to compete in the women’s single and freestyle class 2. The 22-year-old’s best performances this season have been two silver medals in the freestyle at the Mainhatten Cup and Polish Open.

6. Cox’s dance partner Sander Deckx could also give the home crowd something to cheer for. Deckx and Cox have danced together in the duo Latin and duo standard class 2 events this season, and are expected to team up at their second straight World Championships.

7. Deckx, also 22, claimed his first career victory this season at the Cuijk International competition in the men’s single class 1.

8. Although it is their first World Championships, Belgium is no stranger to hosting World Para Dance sport competitions, having staged the Belgian Open from 2014-16.

9. The last competition before the 2017 World Championships will be the Starlight Open in Hong Kong on 17 September.

10. The 2017 World Para Dance Sport Championships have their own website.