The SAIBC, founded by Dirk Badenhorst in 2008 as a biennial competition, has been presented annually since 2021 when the pandemic created the opportunity for the event to go digital. Today the SAIBC is recognised as the foremost classical ballet competition on the African continent that attracts dancers from South Africa and across the globe. The next South African International Ballet Competition will be held in Cape Town in 2024.

The SAIBC acknowledges the invaluable support of the City of Cape Town, the Western Cape Government Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport, the Mary Oppenheimer and Daughter Foundation, the Joan St. Leger Lindbergh Charitable Trust, Primedia Broadcasting and other key Donors.

Dirk Badenhorst is a major player in the South African ballet and dance, having served as a founding member and the first CEO of the South African Ballet Theatre.

Now Director of Mzansi Productions and the SAIBC, Mr Badenhorst has served on numerous high-level ballet competition jury panels world-wide, and is committed to making a positive impact on ballet in SA

Since the founding of the SAIBC, Dirk Badenhorst has continued to strengthen his ties with the ballet world at an international level, with exchange projects with various countries, most notably Cuba, China and South Korea, as the Africa representative for the Royal Academy of Dance, and as a judge at various international ballet competitions.

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