Jeon Min-chul wins top prize at ballet's Youth America Grand Prix

Jeon Min-chul performs a variation from "La Esmeralda" in the 2025 Youth America Grand Prix finals. (Youth America Grand Prix)

South Korean dancer Jeon Min-chul won the Grand Prix title at the 2025 Youth America Grand Prix, the world's largest student ballet competition in Tampa, Florida, on Friday.

Jeon competed in the senior men's division held April 21-27 and was named the overall Grand Prix winner -- the highest award given across all divisions and age groups.

Jeon performed a variation from "La Esmeralda" in the finals and Albrecht’s variation from "Giselle" in the semi-finals, a piece he had recently danced with the Universal Ballet on April 18 and 20.

Jeon's win marks the fifth time a South Korean dancer has claimed the top honor at the prestigious international competition, following Seo Hee (2003), principal dancer of American Ballet Theatre; Kim Ki-min (2012), principal at the Mariinsky Ballet; Jun Joon-hyuk (2016), soloist with The Royal Ballet; and Park Geon-hee (2024) of Korea National University of Arts.

Jeon previously competed in the YAGP junior division in 2019, reaching the finals, and returned in 2023 to claim first place in the senior classical pas de deux and third place in the senior solo category.

The 20-year-old dancer made headlines last year when it was announced he would join the Mariinsky Ballet Company, becoming only the second Korean to do so after Kim Ki-min in 2012.

Founded in 2000, the Youth America Grand Prix is the largest international ballet competition, open to dancers aged 9 to 19. This year, more than 12,000 dancers from around the world participated in the preliminary rounds, with approximately 2,000 dancers from 41 countries advancing to the finals.