Hanna Karttunen

Hanna Karttunen was born in Oulo, Finland. Prior to dancing with Paul, Hanna danced professionally with Sandro Cavallini for Italy, Geir Bakke for Norway, and Rick Valenzuela for the United States. As an Amateur Latin dancer, Hanna had become a Finnish national champion and Under 21 Blackpool finalist with Jaakko Toivonen. Following Paul’s retirement in 2004, Hanna partnered with Victor Da Silva in the Exhibition style, with whom she became a four-time World and Blackpool Champion. Hanna also appeared on the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing in 2004, coming in second place with partner Christopher Parker.

Paul Killick

Paul Killick started his Dancesport career early, competing in the Junior, Youth, and Amateur age groups before becoming World Amateur Latin Champion in 1993 with Inga Hass. Over the following years, he became a Professional Latin finalist at all the major world competitions with former partners Vibeke Toft and Karina Smirnoff. He also appeared on Strictly Come Dancing’s first two seasons. Since his retirement in 2004, Paul continues to remain active in the Dancesport community as an adjudicator and member of the WDC, NDCA, and British Dance Council, as well as the owner of the flagship Arthur Murray in Beverly Hills.

Couple's Career Highlights

During their partnership, which lasted from 1999 to 2004, Paul and Hanna represented England in the Professional Latin category. Together they won the UK Open, the International Championships, the Dutch Open, the US Open, and the Kremlin Cup. They were also multi-time finalists at Blackpool and the World Championships.