Triple crown for Hartlepool dancer Mollie-Mae Jukes

Mollie-Mae Jukes, 8, from Hartlepool, took part in the Midlands Open which was held at Birmingham.

And even though there were between 25 and 30 children in each section of the contest, it was Mollie-Mae who came back to the North East with three wins.

Mum Julie Jukes, 42, said: “I was ecstatic. She has put in so much hard work and determination.”

Mollie-Mae was the winner in the juvenile tap, juvenile modern and juvenile ballet sections and Julie said; “She has been in championships before but not come first.”

The Foggy Furze area youngster has been a student with the Val Armstrong School of Performing Arts, which is based in Whitby Streeet South in Hartlepool, since she was four years old.

Her talent and dedication won praise from the academy’s owner Val Armstrong.

Val said: “Mollie Mae is an exceptional all round talented student.

“She is very focused for such a young dancer and is a joy to teach. She is very popular with everyone at VA.”

Julie was at the competition in Birmingham to see her daughter’s finest moment - so far.

She said: “The competition ranged from 25 to 30 children in each section over the course of the day.”

Dancers had to compete in early rounds before moving on the finals and it meant children faced a full day of top-notch competition against the best rivals.

Julie added: “There were lots of dance schools there at the time and we were there from 9am to 9pm.

“Mollie-Mae danced at 10am, 12pm, 2pm and 5pm and the announcements were made at 8pm. It’s a long day and she was back at school the next day.”

But it led to a fantastic result for the Hartlepool youngster and Julie admitted she was emotional as the results started to come through.

She added: “She is my little girl and I was brought to tears.”

She is also mum to 19-year-old daughter Jade and Julie, who is an office worker in Hartlepool, is married to Karl, 42, who is a self employed plumber.

Next for Mollie-Mae is the British Championship in Blackpool as well as a competition on Merseyside this month.

But after around four years of dancing, Julie admitted Mollie-Mae’s triumph was one of the greatest moments for her and added there was no feeling like it.