So You Think You Can Dance (Season 3) finalists

Jimmy "Jimmers" Alexander Arguello is a contemporary and lyrical dancer from Miami, Florida, who was trained in jazz, ballet, hip-hop and tap at the Dance Gallery. He began to dance at age 12 and aspires to be a professional dancer on tour with a dance company. He considers Brian Friedman his favorite professional dancer. Outside of dance, his hobbies include swimming and track and field. He feels his being eliminated from the show instead of Cedric Gardner was unfair, since he remembers the first two seasons stressing all-around dance ability rather than uniqueness. Arguello was also afraid that Gardner would put his partner, Shauna Noland, into the bottom 3 couples and in danger of elimination as a result of his not being able to learn choreography quickly. He was eliminated on 2007-06-21.

Kameron Bink

Kameron Bink is a hip-hop and contemporary dancer from Florida with training in jazz, tap, ballet and acrobatics. He has been dancing since he was 6 years old and auditioned for the show in Atlanta, Georgia. Bink has performed in the Latin Grammy Awards, and feels he has too many favorite professional dancers to list. Outside of dance, he enjoys motorcycles and skydiving. He was eliminated on 2007-07-26 and will be going on tour with the show.

Cedric Gardner

Cedric Pernell Gardner Jr. is a freestyle dancer from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with limited formal training from The Peck School of the Arts at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Millennium Dance Complex, EDGE Performing Arts Center, Monsters of HipHop, and Dance2XS. He began to dance at age 7, but did not take it seriously until he was 19, and lists Napoleon and Tabitha D'umo, JesseLee Santos, Brian Friedman, Misha Gabriel, Tony Testa, Nick Bass, Gil Duldulao, Shane Sparks, Patrick Chen, Andye Jamieson, Marty Kudelka, Popin Pete, Kevin Maher, Jayson Rhapsody, Shirley Gilbert, Louis Hurd, Danny Kuepper, Sarah Wilbur, Andre Tyson, Simone Ferro, Mia Michaels, Roberto and Edwin Olvera, Michael Jackson and James Brown as his favorite dancers, with Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire as his all time favorites. Gardner aspires to dance professionally, eventually owning a dance studio and production company, as well as a toy company. Outside of dance, he likes to play the drums, golf, chess, and video games, as well as inline skate, fly kites and bowl. As a result of the show, Debbie Allen has offered him a full scholarship to the Debbie Allen Dance Academy, which he has accepted. He was eliminated on 2007-07-12.

Anya Garnis

Anya Garnis (b. 1982) is a Russian-born Latin dancer from New York City, with eight years of formal training in Russia. She started dancing at the age of 10 and has reached the finals at the 2004 U.S. Open Ballroom Championship. She lists Mikhail Baryshnikov as her favorite professional dancer. Garnis has lived in the United States since 2001 and has been dancing with partner and fellow finalist Pasha Kovalev for nine years. Although she has her ballroom costumes sewn by a dressmaker in New York City, Garnis designs them herself. She was eliminated on 2007-07-19 and will be going on tour as a special guest.

Jaimie Goodwin

Jaimie Goodwin is a contemporary, lyrical, and jazz dancer with 7 years of training in contemporary, pointe, and MusicAL theatre and 12 years of training in tap, ballet, and jazz. She started dancing at 7 years of age and trains with Denise Wall, mother to season 3 runner up Danny Tidwell and season 2 runner up Travis Wall, who has been her dance partner for 5 years and whom she lists as her favorite professional dancer, along with her older sister. Outside of dance, Goodwin likes to write, and wants to author a book AbOUT her mother's life and struggle with cancer to benefit a breast cancer fund set up in her name. In the future, she would like to keep dancing professionally, get into the film industry and act, as well as get married and have a child and maltepoo puppy. She was eliminated on 2007-07-26 and will be touring with the top 10. Currently she is dating season 2 Contestant Ivan Koumaev.

Lauren Gottlieb

Lauren Gottlieb is a contemporary, jazz funk, and hip-hop dancer from Scottsdale, Arizona, studio trained in jazz, ballet, hip-hop, lyrical and tap. She started dancing at the age of 7 and moved to Los Angeles in 2006 to pursue her dance career. Gottlieb performed with Shakira at the 49th Grammy Awards. In season 2, she assisted Tyce DiOrio in choreographing routines for the contestants. Her boyfriend, Bryan Tanaka, is her favorite professional dancer. She hopes to find her own style of dancing as a result of the show, eventually take part in a world dance tour, star in her own film, and teach. She was eliminated on 2007-08-13 and will take part in the tour. Lauren's other name with a more Asian background is "Misha Chan"

Lauren Gottlieb once danced at Betty Johnson's School of Dance in Phoenix, Arizona.

Faina Savich

Faina is a ballroom dancer. She started dancing at age 9 in Russia. When Faina moved to the United States she took up Latin and Ballroom at age 11. Her older brother Stanislav was a Top 20 Finalist on the Second series of So You Think You Can Dance. She was eliminated on 2007-06-12.

Hokuto "Hok" Konishi

Hokuto "Hok" Konishi (b. 1985-07-11 in Tokyo, Japan) is a hip-hop and breakdancer from California, trained for two years in hip-hop and locking. He grew up in Oxford, England and began to dance at age 15. Konishi was formerly a member of the dance troupe SickStep, with whom he auditioned for season two—having previously auditioned for season one as well—and was the final member to make it through to the Vegas stage. In season two, Konishi nearly made it to the final twenty, but had only a student visa and was unable to be legally employed in the United States, which resulted in his dismissal from the program. Subsequently, he obtained a work permit and became eligible to participate in the competition in season three. As of 2007, he is a member of a breaking crew called Quest, which competes and performs in various venues in California. Konishi is also friends with So You Think You Can Dance season one contestant Ryan Conferido; they are both members of Quest. Andre Fuentez, B-boy Casper, Aja, and Tetris are his favorite professional dancers and he has performed in Vibe, All VC, Collaboration, and the Sai-Gai Carnival. Outside of dance, he likes to cook, draw, paint, design, and play the violin. He is currently in the United States as a student in graphic design at Santa Monica College. He was eliminated on 2007-07-19 and will go on tour as a special guest.

Pasha Kovalev

Pavel "Pasha" Kovalev is a Latin and ballroom dancer who auditioned for the show in New York City with longtime partner and fellow finalist Anya Garnis. A Russian native, he began dancing at the age of 8, and received formal training in ballet and jazz as he grew older. His favorite professional dancers are Rudolf Nureyev and Mikhail Baryshnikov. Kovalev has appeared in the production Lois and Lois and in the future, he hopes to be financially independent and dancing not just for money, but for fun. Kovalev was eliminated on 2007-08-13 and will be touring with the show.

Ashlee Langas

Ashlee Caroline Langas is a contemporary dancer from Texas who auditioned in Chicago, Illinois. She began to dance at the age of 2 and has many years of formal training in numerous styles with Gotta Dance (8), Candy Crocker School of Dance (6), Contemporary Dance Techniques (5), Danceworks (1), Fox Troupe (1), and the Kilgore College Dance Department (2005-2007), as well as drill team experience through high school and junior college. Langas' favorite dancer is Mia Michaels. She aspires to become a dance teacher and choreographer, and would like the opportunity to travel abroad. Outside of dance, she likes to read and exercise. She was eliminated on 2007-06-14.

Ricky Palomino

Richard "Ricky" Marcelino Palomino II is a contemporary dancer from Phoenix, Arizona, who began dancing in his public school's physical education course at 14 and auditioned on a whim in Atlanta, Georgia. Although he has no formal training, he was mentored by Michelle Ceballos of the Royal Ballet, Jeremy Miller, and, following a move to New York City, Lucy "Jen" Ballard of Cedar Lake Dance. Palomino describes his instruction as "[soaking] up as much as possible in the little time [he] had." He has performed three times for the Dancers Responding to AIDS benefit, and lists Sylvie Guillem and Jose Manuel Carreño as his favorite professional dancers. In the future, Palomino hopes to be involved in the music and film industry as a recording artist and actor, as well as create his own line of designer apparel, "Marcelino," and move fashion shows in the direction of full theatre productions. He also would like to open dance instruction facilities across the country and increase students' exposure to dance in public education. Currently, he employs music production software such as Logic Pro to create his own tracks, and has just finished his second album. He released his first, Amateurly Honest, on iTunes in 2005 under the name Marcelino. Palomino also designs and creates the cover art for his albums using Adobe Photoshop and experiments with visual effects and video software to make music videos. Outside of his career, he likes to exercise, wash his car, and attend museum exhibits. He was eliminated 2007-06-14.

Jessi Peralta

Jessica "Jessi" Peralta is a lyrical and pop dancer trained at the Holly Rocks Dance Factory, as well as other studios in Florida, New York City, and Los Angeles. She began dancing when she was 3 years old, and aspires to be a professional performer and star in a dance film. Although dancing is her dream, in order to support herself, Peralta was forced to obtain a day job. Outside of dance, she likes to crochet, paint mythical characters in underwater settings, and watch [...] and the City. On the day of taping the third performance show, Peralta was sent to the hospital for shortness of breath, chest pain, and dehydration, and was not able to perform. Viewers were not shown the fact that she had been hospitalized the previous week for dehydration as well. She felt that she did not need medical attention the second time, and discharged herself to not let her partner, Pasha Kovalev, down. However, the show's legal team considered it too great of a liability to allow her to dance in her condition. Since Peralta was not able to dance in the performance show, she was automatically placed in the bottom 3 couples, and in danger of elimination by the judges on 2007-06-28. (see show format) She was eliminated. Subsequently, fans began a petition to reinstate her, arguing that since she was not put in the bottom 3 by viewer vote, she should be allowed to remain on the program. Nigel Lythgoe addressed the issue the following week, noting that some action had to be taken on the part of the show's organizers to account for the fact that Peralta did not perform.

Shauna Noland

Shauna Noland is a contemporary dancer from Santa Cruz, California formally trained in jazz, modern, ballet, tap and hip-hop at the Dance Company of San Francisco and No Limits Dance and Performing Arts of Soquel, California. She began dancing when she was 2 years old. Her mother, Sue Noland, is a ballerina who owns the Pacific Wave Surf Shop in Santa Cruz with her husband, Todd Noland. Noland graduated from Santa Cruz High School in 2006 and soon after moved to North Hollywood to pursue her career. In 2007, a solo routine she choreographed earned her a prize at the Hall of Fame Dance Challenge of Alameda County. Noland has also performed for the Hollywood Fame and CBS television show "Dance Revolution." In the future, she hopes to be an inspiration and share her passion for dance. Outside of dance, she likes to sing. She was eliminated 2007-07-12 and will be going on the tour as a special guest.

Dominic Sandoval

Dominic "D-Trix" Kyle Sandoval is a b-boy and freestyle urban dancer from Roseville, California, with little formal training. He began breakdancing at age 13 and has performed at NBA and WNBA games, as well as won the 2005 "Evolution 2" competition held in Orlando, Florida with his breaking crew, Flexible Flave. Three months before the Los Angeles auditions, in order to prepare, Sandoval took hip-hop and choreography classes. He lists Ivan "The Urban Action Figure"—who has appeared on America's Got Talent—as his favorite professional dancer. Sandoval aspires to learn all styles and genres of dance and to be known as a dancer, rather than just a breaker. On the show, he was known for having a crush on host Cat Deeley and seemingly constantly dropping his partner, Sabra Johnson, most notably during a Hairspray group routine, where she was accidentally dropped on her head and unable to finish the number. He was eliminated on 2007-08-02 and will be going on tour with the show.

Jesus Solorio

Jesus Solorio is a contemporary dancer who appeared on Season 3 of So You Think You Can Dance. He was noted mostly for his smile that "lighted up the stage" as said by host Cat Deeley. He was voted off on the 2007-06-28 because he had a weaker solo than Neil Haskell and Danny Tidwell. Jesus will be going on tour as a special guest. Jesus made it to the top 40 on season 2; and was also spotted on Hannah Montana as a cameo dancer.

Sara Von Gillern

Sara Kei Von Gillern, also known as Mis' Von, is a 23 year old breakdancer originally from Rock Island, Illinois and currently residing in Fort Collins, Colorado. She auditioned for So You Think You Can Dance at Chicago, Illinois auditions, making it through to the Las Vegas auditions where she made it through to the top 20 dancers without having to "dance for her life" at all. Sara made it to the top 8, and was eliminated on August 2, 2007. She returned for the finale on August 16, 2007 where three of her partner dances were chosen as season favorites, including her disco during top 10 week with Neil Haskell to "Knock on Wood", her West Coast Swing routine during top 14 week with Pasha Kovalev to "the Rockafeller Skank", and her pop jazz routine during top 20 week with Jesus Solorio to "Cabaret Hoover".

Sara started dancing at age 4, studying basic styles such as tap, ballet, jazz, and modern. She became interested in breakdancing at age 19. Sara has trained with Red Bull Beat Riders 2006, an elite hip hop training session that accepted only 30 dancers worldwide to attend. In addition, she has also trained with the Colorado State University Dance Program, the Gruv Factory, Motion Underground, and the Academy of the Performing Arts, as well as at the Broadway Dance Center as an intern. Sara has danced for the Denver Nuggets NBA team as a member of their hip hop dance team, the Mob Squad, and for the AFL Colorodo Crush as a Crush City Dancer.

Sara previously danced with the crews Elements of Motion and Females En Motion, and currently is a member of two crews: the GetWithThis Crew and the Ladies First Crew. She is also a member of the travelling show "Monster Shop Bump'n," which focuses on hip hop dancing with costumes that portray a positive message. As a member of the So You Think You Can Dance top 10, Sara will be going on tour this fall across the country.