{
  "id": 1653081,
  "title": "Blood, sweat and ballet: SA ballerina makes history in Russia",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/blood-sweat-and-ballet-sa-ballerina-makes-history-in-russia",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-18T06:15:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Citizen",
    "slug": "the-citizen",
    "url": "https://www.citizen.co.za/lifestyle/blood-sweat-and-ballet-sa-ballerina-makes-history-in-russia/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Ballet appears effortless, but it requires immense effort and dedication. Candice Desilets, a 20-year-old South African ballerina, makes it seem effortless. She recently became the first South African to graduate from Russia's Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet in St. Petersburg. The academy demands six-hour training days, dancing through injuries, and enduring harsh criticism.\n\nDesilets arrived in Russia without speaking Russian, but she quickly adapted, becoming fluent during her four years there. Russian ballet culture is different from South Africa's, with ballet performances regularly staged in theatres and being a respected discipline. Teachers at the academy were brutally honest, criticizing dancers' weight, appearance, and performances. However, Desilets understood that this was part of the academy's tough-love environment, where teachers cared deeply for their students.\n\nLife in Russia was vastly different from South Africa. Russian winters were cold, and the food initially unappealing. But after returning home, Desilets missed Russian cuisine, particularly dairy products, desserts, and savoury dishes. She also noticed the cleaner streets, regularly swept roads, well-maintained gardens, and cleared snow in Russia, contrasting with her experiences in South Africa.\n\nUpon her return to South Africa, Desilets realized the significance of her achievement. The constant pressure and hardships she endured seemed ordinary there, but in Russia, they felt like daily challenges. Now, with her graduation, she understands the magnitude of her success. While she'll continue to live in South Africa, Desilets remains committed to her ballet career in Russia, performing daily while still considering South Africa her true home.",
  "summary": "Years of hard work at a Russian ballet school have turned South African Candice Desilets into a budding ballet star.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}