Cristian Ponder began dancing and competing in Latin Ballroom at four years old. Later on, he began training in ballet, contemporary, and other styles. His passion for ballet resulted in his concentration at Vitacca Ballet and School for Dance. In 2022, he performed with Vitacca Ballet during their inaugural season, under the direction of Kelly Ann Vitacca. Throughout his pre-professional training at Vitacca Ballet and School for Dance, Cristian achieved the honor of being awarded the Grand Prix for the Youth American Grand Prix Houston in 2023 and placed in the top 12 at YAGP finals in 2021 and 2022. Cristian was also a silver medalist for ADC IBC in 2022. In 2023, Cristian joined the European School of Ballet (ESB) under the direction of Jean Yves Esquerre and spent time at Canada’s National Ballet School as an exchange student. In 2024 he entered the ESB Trainee program.
