Oliver Pineda is the Founder and Director of World reknown Latin Motion Dance Academy, founded by Oliver Pineda & Natalie Zeller (formally Reis) in the year 2000. As Australia’s only 9 x World Salsa Champion, Oliver has won five of his World Salsa Titles with celebrity dance partner of 20 years & 3 x winner of “Dancing with the Stars” Luda Kroitor. They continue to inspire by performing & winning championships till today.
Read more about OliverAs well as his very own subscription website www.oliverpineda.dance; housing over 500 videos with new uploads every month plus his NEW International initiative; The Oliver Pineda TOP Teams, allowing dancers worldwide to learn, train & perform under his extensive choreographic guidance & experience. Oliver is also responsible for introducing Rueda in 1999, Kizomba & Semba in 2007 to Sydney. He was one of the instigators of linear style Salsa in the year 2000 & is now undoubtedly the pioneer of Mambo ‘On2’ in Australia.
Oliver was most recently featured in an article as one of the top 10 male Salsa dancers in the world & now directs Latin Motion alongside business partner Mitch Bilic.
Some of Oliver’s achievements include but are not limited to –
▪ 2001 IDO World Salsa Champion – Miami (with Luda Kroitor)
▪ 2005 World Salsa Open Champion – Puerto Rico (with Luda Kroitor)
▪ 2005 ESPN World Salsa Champion – Las Vegas (with Luda Kroitor
▪ 2006 ESPN World Salsa Champion – Las Vegas (with Luda Kroitor)
▪ 2007 ESPN World Salsa Champion – Miami (with Luda Kroitor)
▪ 2012 World Salsa Champion – Hong Kong (with Vali Damaskou)
▪ 2014 World Salsa Champion – Hong Kong (Solo)
▪ 2015 World Salsa Summit Champion – Miami (Solo)
▪ 2017 World Latin Dance Cup Champion – Miami (Solo)
As well as being a special guest performer/choreographer on Channel 7’s ‘Dancing with the Stars’ demonstrating Salsa, Oliver was also a choreographer for Channel 10’s hit TV show “So You Think You Can Dance” & featured numerous times on the Morning Show with Kerrie Anne.
Born in Australia and of Chilean descent, this young man started dancing Salsa at the age of 10. Having danced for over 20 years, Oliver is now Australia’s most undisputed Latin Dance talent. His unique style of dance and clear precise teaching methods make him one of the most admired and sought after Salsa dancers and instructors in the world. Oliver has taught workshops in every continent at thousands of events around the World and continues to travel spreading his passion & knowledge for dance.
Upon finishing high school, Oliver received a scholarship to train in London with partner Luda in preparation for the Biggest Dancesport Competition in the World. They competed against 600+ couples in the under 21 Youth division and placed top 98 at the famous Blackpool Championship.
Oliver was then granted a scholarship to attend the Australian Collage of Physical Education (ACPE) to complete a Bachelor in Dance.
Instead, Oliver with his 7 years of training in Dancesport chose to pursue the music and dance of his Latin American roots; Salsa. A decision that would forever change his life.
Although passionate about Salsa and Mambo, Oliver’s dance experience also extends to Rueda, Merengue, Zouk Lambada, Kizomba, Semba, Samba, Cumbia, Cha Cha, Rumba, Afro Cuban, & all the Latin / Modern Dacesport Ballroom styles such as Jive, Paso Doble, Waltz, Slow Foxtrot, Tango, Venice Waltz & Quick Step.
Oliver, a well known percussionist owes his musical talents to his two cousins Jason & Gary & father Julio, all well known percussionists in the Industry. Having played at the recently closed Vivaz Nightclub since the age of 16 & La Campana Nightclub since the age of 18 in Sydney, Oliver now occasionally plays with some of Sydney’s top Salsa bands, mastering the timbales, congas and bongo among other percussive instruments. His early performance experience within the Brazilian culture has also enabled him to handle Brazilian style instruments such as the snare drum, zurdo, pandero and the hepinique. Oliver gets invited to play with some of the world’s best singers & bands in countries & events all over the World.
As well as his musical & dance talents, Oliver is also a black belt martial artistist in the combat art of Tae Kwon Do having taught kids from a young age & competed in many tournaments in Australia. This relationship between martial arts & dance was formed early on in his life, equipping him with an understanding of the basics of the Brazilian martial arts, Capoeira.
Oliver was given the Honour of being Australia’s first Male dancer ever to be featured on the cover of Australia’s VIVA Magazine in it’s December issue 2004 & in January 2008 issue with partner Luda. He was also given the Best Male Instructor Award at the biggest Salsa Congress in the World, in 2006 at the West Coast Salsa Congress in Los Angeles. Further more, it was Oliver (and Natalie Reis) who lead the “Americas” segment out onto the field in the Olympic Opening Ceremony in Sydney 2000.
Oliver now heads one of the highest calibre student performance groups in Australia, the ‘The Oliver Pineda TOP Teams’ an International Initiative allowing dancers from ALL over the World to followed & admired by dancers all over the world & is proud to be the creator of his own brand of Salsa, internationally known as ‘Aussie Style Salsa’.
Oliver continues to spread his incredibly profound knowledge & unique, sought after teaching style to dancers around the World & is now in the process of expanding Latin Motion, locally & internationally with franchises already in the works.
Mitch began his dance journey during his teenage years learning Jazz, Tap, Hip Hop, Drama and Singing through Keane Kids Studios in Sydney. Having had a break for a number of years, he returned to Dance in 2005 taking up Street Latin as rehabilitation for a Football Knee Injury. He has never looked back since.
Read more about MitchHe found his love for Latin dance, like many, on the social dance floor. Beginning with Cuban Salsa and moving after a year to LA salsa, Mitch teamed up in 2009 with Ellicia, forming a partnership that would lead them to many great successes both Internationally and
Nationally including –
▪ 2012 New Zealand Latin Dancesport Champions
▪ 2012/13 2 x Australian Salsa Champions
▪ 2013 World Bachata Champions
▪ 2013 5th place World Dancesport Games, Taiwan
▪ 2014 2nd Place World Championships, Hong Kong
▪ 2014 4th Place World Bachata Masters, Spain
▪ 2015 World Salsa Solo Professional Bachata Champions
▪ 2015 Australian Latin Dance Championships Professional Bachata Champions
Mitch has also achieved:
▪ 2014 Australian Salsa Shines Teams Champion
▪ 2014 2nd Place Salsa Pro-Am, World Latin Dance Cup
His impressive resume includes working for well-known production companies such as Latin Dance Australia, Australian Opera, WB Productions, Di Heaton Dancers, Sydney Dance Company, Rapid Loss, Cheeky Entertainment, Modus Vivendi, Seven Flavors and more.
Mitch and Ellicia travel frequently both Nationally and Internationally as guest Instructors and Performers at many Latin Congresses and Events around
the World. Countries including England, Spain, Germany, Austria, Holland, Wales, New Zealand, China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Malaysia and
Australia.
Mitch is known for his fun, energetic and charismatic personality both on the dance floor as well as in the classes he teaches and with his
mesmerising performances he continues to inspire people across the World.
Ellicia comes from a dance background that started as soon as she could walk, having trained in Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Contemporary from 4 years old,
with the main focus being Ballet, completing her RAD Advanced Ballet Exam, a course that takes a minimum 11 years to complete.
Having successfully won places to join many of Australia’s leading ballet academies, including the West Australian Academy of Performing Arts
(WAAPA), at 17 years old Ellicia chose instead to start her professional dance career with a 5 month cabaret contract in Japan. Since this time
Ellicia has not looked back, performing and modelling for stage, TV, and film throughout the World.
Her impressive resume includes working for well-known production companies such as Di Heaton Dancers, Carnival Cruise Lines, WB Productions, G’day Hollywood Productions, Dance Encore, Sydney Dance Company Entertainment; TV commercials for Nokia, Compaq, Dominoes Pizza, Haier AC, Berger Paints, Onida TV, Rapid Loss, and Boombox; Run way shows for United Colours of Beneton, Puma, Daks London, Levis, and many Australian and international designers.
Ellicia fell in love with Street Latin in 2009, and with her highly trained background she quickly added the Street Latin styles to her professional
repertoire. Ellicia teaches for Latin Motion Dance Academy, one of the most successful and longest running Latin schools in Australia.
Ellicia along with her partner Mitch have already achieved impressive credentials in such a short span of time:
▪ 2012 New Zealand Latin Dancesport Champions
▪ 2012/13 2 x Australian Salsa Champions
▪ 2013 WORLD BACHATA CHAMPIONS
▪ 2013 5th Place World Dancesport Games, Taiwan
▪ 2014 2nd Place World Bachata Championships, Hong Kong
▪ 2014 4th PlaceWorld Bachata Masters, Spain
▪ 2015 Australian Bachata Champions- ALDC
▪ 2015 Australian Bachata Champions- World Salsa Solo
Mitch and Ellicia travel frequently both Nationally and Internationally as guest instructors and performers at many Latin Congresses and Events,
including countries as England, Spain, Germany.
Luda Kroitor is the current 5 x World Salsa Champion with dance partner Oliver Pineda. They are the winners of the 2001 IDO World Salsa Championships, 2005 Puerto Rican Salsa Open, 2005, 2006 ESPN World Salsa Championships held in Las Vegas and most recently the 2007 ESPN World Salsa Championships held in Disney World, Florida.
Luda has also been confirmed as special guest choreographer for the Channel 10 TV hit show ‘So You Think You Can Dance’. Of Russian origin, Luda began her passion for Ballroom, Salsa and Brazilian dance at the young age of 11. She won her first national competition, the Youth Latin Championships in 2000. Since then she has competed at many National & International Ballroom competitions including one of the Worlds biggest & most prestigious Ballroom competitions ‘Blackpool’ placing 8th in the World against 600 other couples.
Luda toured the United States with the international show “Burn the Floor” and featured in NSW Tourism TVC campaign as a dancer with Csaba Szirmai. Luda also won the TV series Strictly Dancing with Csaba in 2004.
Luda performs with Australia’s Most Successful Latin Dance School, Latin Motion Dance Academy in various dance show productions at suburban clubs and appears at a variety of corporate events. Throughout “Dancing with the Stars” Series, Luda has partnered “Home and Away” actor, Jason Smith in series two, singer David Campbell in series three, Boxing Champion legend Kostya Tszyu in series four which saw them make the finals as runners up and comedian Anh Do in the last series which also saw them make the finals as runners up.
Luda with her infectious personality, love for life & dance skills are invaluable to Latin Motion and its students and has been, since joining Latin Motion in 2001.
- Runner Up – United Kingdom Professional Rising Star Championship
- Finalist – Galaxy of Stars Ballroom Championship, UK
- Finalist – World 10 Dance Championship
- Semi Finalist – World Classical Show Dance
- Quarter Finalist – All Open Professional Events (UK Open, British Open, International Championship and
World Championship) - Semi Finalist – All Open Professional Asian Tour Competitions, 2015
Since moving back to Sydney, Lauren focuses on street Latin styles specialising in Bachata.
Some achievements include:
- 2014 1st Place Australian Semi-Pro Salsa Couple Champion
- 2014 1st Place Australian Salsa Open Professional Teams Champion
- 2015 1st Place Open Latin Teams (Cha Cha) Champion, World Salsa Solo, Brisbane
- 2016 2nd Place Professional Salsa Teams, Hong Kong World Salsa Championship
- 2016 Australian Salsa Professional Couples Champion, World Salsa Solo, Brisbane
- 2017 Winner of Australia’s Best Latin Couple “Best Choreography”
- 2017 2nd Place Open Salsa Shines Duo.
Christine teaches Salsa Levels 4, 5, 6 & 7 Come and have some fun and more than likely a good laugh. Only at Latin Motion on Tuesday and Wednesday nights 🙂
In 2017 she changed her career path by accepting a Contract with Circus Rio as head Samba dancer. In 2018 she met the inspiring 9 x World Champion, Oliver Pineda who offered to take her under his wing and train her to achieve her Salsa Goals and make her mark in the Latin World.
She joined the Latin Motion Family as a Salsa and Samba Instructor and could not feel more honoured to be part of the Team.
Come and join her in On2, Lvl 2, Lvl 5 and Samba!!
Salsa Competition:
2018 Semi-Pro Salso Solo Champion, World Salsa Solo
2019 Semi-Pro Salsa Solo Champion, Australian Dance Cup
