Phantom Regiment won its second Drum Corps International World Championship on Saturday night in Bloomington, Ind.
The corps scored a 98.125 to narrowly edge the Blue Devils’ 98.100. Cavaliers were third with a 97.325 and Carolina Crown earned the best finish in its history with a 96.800.
Phantom Regiment’s win was bolstered by a dominating percussion section. The Paul Rennick-led drummers finished first in quarterfinals, semifinals and finals to earn their second Fred Sanford High Percussion Award in 3 years.
The High General Effect Award also went to Phantom Regiment.
The annual Spirit of Disney Award, which recognizes entertainment, was presented to Phantom Regiment.
An estimated 8,000-9,000 people stayed late into the evening to watch Phantom Regiment do its encore performance on the field. It was a spectacular moment for the corps members and all involved with the organization.
Phantom Regiment entered quarterfinals seeded fourth and moved up one spot each night. It squeaked past Carolina Crown and its “Finis” production on Thursday and then moved in front of the Cavaliers’ “Samurai” program on Friday night before reaching the top spot Saturday night, just in front of Blue Devils and their “Constantly Risking Absurdity” show.
Phantom Regiment congratulates all the corps for a terrific season, but especially the Blue Stars for their return to the top 12 for the first time since 1979 and Blue Devils, Cavaliers and Carolina Crown for the tremendous shows they had all summer long.
And a special thank-you to the Cavaliers for their kind gesture of congratulations after the show.
