From an ice skater to a pole dancer

Regina, winner of the Norwegian Pole Sport Championship Amateur 1 Category in 2016, shares with Pole in Style her pole dance story here.

I moved from my hometown in Switzerland four years ago to Stavanger, Norway because of my fiancée. I am a very active person and as a retired competitive figure skater, I have always loved new sport challenges.

I discovered the exciting world of pole dancing around three years ago but decided to join a course only one and a half year ago here in Norway. Since then I just could not stop. I travelled and learned at many different schools within a very little period of time, from Hungary, Switzerland, the UK to Norway. Pole dance makes me so happy that I simply cannot see myself without it anymore. It has helped me through all my ups and downs and made me so much stronger physically and mentally.

I remember the very first time I tried pole dance, which was three years ago. I joined this introduction class and after the class, I thought to myself, "No way! This is way too hard. My whole body is hurting. This is not for me." After that I decided to train at my local gym instead.

After two years, my gym introduced pole dancing classes and I decided to give it another chance and signed up for a three-month course. It was during very tough period in my life. At that time, I felt very unmotivated in sports and wanted something else that could make me happier. Well, pole dance just came to rescue me!!!

After my first pole class at the 24/7 Gym in Mariero with my favorite instructor in the world Milena, I got hooked. I felt like I finally found what I was looking for and I could not believe how differently I would see pole dance this time. Of course my whole body was still hurting but I felt very motivated to keep improving every week. At the start, I was not even able to do a pull-up on the pole. Knowing what I achieved in only a year up till now makes me so incredibly happy.

Pole has made me a much happier person. I have met so many new good friends. I usually train 3-5 times a week. Currently I am working towards improving my flexibility.

In May 2016, I participated in my first pole competition in Oslo. I consider myself a very competitive person and work hard to tackle new challenges. During my preparation for the competition, there were many times when I wanted to quit. I am glad I did not. I had such a great time at the competition and enjoyed every second on the stage. I was amazed by the Norwegian pole community and the positive atmosphere at the championship, and of course that feeling of winning the competition was one of the best ever.

"Pole dance makes me so happy that I simply cannot see myself without it anymore. It has helped me through all my ups and downs and made me so much stronger physically and mentally."

Watch Regina's performance here.