Miss Lithuania wins 2015 Russian Ballroom Championship – Patricija Belousova

Photo by Grazina Lomovskaja

Make-up by Ana Valyte

Patricija Belousova, a 20-year-old professional ballroom dancer and current titleholder of Miss Lithuania, was born in Vilnius to a Polish-Russian family. Patricija is the 2015 Russian champion, 2014 finalist of the World Championship, and former vice-champion in Germany. During her career, she has also been the vice-champion in Lithuania for several years in a row. Patricija is currently a student at the Lithuanian Sports University.

We caught up with Patricija as she prepares for the Russian Open: WDSF Grand Slam Standard that will take place October 24-25. Patricija discusses how her dance background prepared her for the Miss Universe competition and what it was like to present Lithuania to a world audience.

Baltic Bridge: What are some important characteristics about Lithuania that you emphasized during the Miss Universe competition? Could you explain the meaning behind your chosen national costume during this segment of the Miss Universe competition?

Patricija: The idea for the national-costume dress popped up after my favorite Lithuanian designer and I read a poem written by our country's famous author, Kristijonas Donelaitis. The poem called “Years” was written exactly 300 years ago. This date is very important to Lithuania because Donelaitis is the author of Lithuania’s first classic language poem and is considered to be the first big Lithuanian writer.

This poem then led us to a famous Lithuanian fairy tale: “Jurate and Kastytis” by poet Maironis. The lady Jurate lived in the palace on the bottom of the Baltic Sea. She fell in love with a man, Kastytis, who lived on the land. Their love was very strong, but the Gods were against it and destroyed here palace into pieces of amber and various shells. The national dress was inspired by this story. The flowing material of the skirt depicts the ocean foam that washed up the amber and seashells that can be found sewn into the dress. The costume was created by EM Salon’s designer Egle Modzeliauskiene, who is a prominent Lithuanian designer in the Baltic states and abroad in the dance world.

Photo contributed by Patricija

Baltic Bridge: What are some other characteristics unique to Lithuania? How do you see Lithuania from a dancer's perspective?

Patricija: A country’s uniqueness is often found in its history. Lithuania has an extremely rich history, but unfortunately not many know about it since we are a very small country. We also have stunning nature, clever people and the most beautiful women in the world. As well, our nation is very proud of amber, a symbol of Lithuania. This jewel, one of the oldest amulets, is often compared to gold or even pearls. The Lithuanian word for amber, ‘gintaras,’ stems from the verb ‘ginti,’ which means to protect. As a result, the mythological stories of this stone evoke qualities of health and magic.

As a dancer, I would also like to introduce Lithuania through the world of dance sport. Arunas Bizokas and Edita Daniute were a legendary dance couple and are still considered as one of the best of all time in the world. Although they split up and now represent different dance federations, both couples are unbelievably successful. (Arunas Bizokas dances with Katusha Demidova, representing the USA in the World Dance Council. Edita Daniute dances with Mirko Gozzoli, representing Lithuania in the World Dance Sport Federation). Edita and Mirko are World and European champions. I’m incredibly happy to talk about Edita and Mirko since they are my coaches, and I hope to achieve their results one day.

Photo contributed by Patricija

Baltic Bridge: As the current title-holder of Miss Lithuania, you’ve had several engagements throughout the year and have continued your dance career. What do you look forward to next?

Patricija: My long-term goal is to earn money in order to open a dance school for children, adults and physically challenged people to help individuals find meaning and beauty in life through dance. In the mean time, I'm excited for the upcoming Russian Open: WDSF Grand Slam Standard, which starts this month on October 24th.