The Miss USA pageant has competitors with exceptional talents every year, but in 2017, the contestants come with serious dance experience, some are even professional dancers.
Ahead of the competition on May 14, here's a look at some of the talented women with passion for dance that runs as strong as pageants. Miss USA airs Sunday, May 14 live from Las Vegas at 8/7c on Fox, and 2016 winner, Deshauna Barber, will crown the new champion.

Whitney Wandland, Miss Illinois USA 2017

Courtesy of Whitney Wandland
Whitney has been dancing for more than 20 years. She began training at 3 years old and booked her first Broadway show in Chicago when she was 6. "I realized that performing was my calling when I was just 6 years old, and I haven't stopped dancing since," she said.
Currently, she is the Captain of the Chicago Bulls NBA dance team, the Chicago Luvabulls, which she has been a member for the past four seasons. This year, she was selected to represent the Chicago Bulls at NBA Allstar Weekend. She also works as a professional dancer, most recently performing on three episodes of Fox's TV show "Empire," which she called the "opportunity of a lifetime." Dance still stays with her during the Miss USA competition, too. "I think it is so important to show girls that no matter your career choice or how hard it may seem, with persistence and hard work, anything is possible," she said. "As Miss USA, that is the message that I would want to project."

Skylar Witte, Miss Wisconsin USA 2017

Courtesy of Skylar Witte
Skylar calls herself "a lifelong dancer." She started training in first grade and continued on to win the 2015 Division 1 Wisconsin State Dance Champion, as part of the D.C. Everest High School Dance Team. Skylar also starred in a rock ballet with the Introspect Arts of Weston, Wisconsin, a company of youth under the age of 21 that create and perform full-scale productions addressing social issues. Dance taught her the value of hard work, team building and persistence, she said. "I often share the words of my high school dance coach, Renee Buchholz. 'You can't control what the other teams do, but you can go out there and give the best you possibly can.'"

Cassie Lewis, Miss Idaho USA 2017

Courtesy of Cassie Lewis
Cassie played sports and took ballet as a child, but in high school she wanted to be more active in school functions, she said, and fell in love with a mix of cheer and dance. Cassie went on to perform with her college cheerleading team and discovered a love for Latin dance. She became a certified instructor and teaches Latin dance at the University of Idaho. She also choreographs for a local high school scholarship program and is the coordinator of the City of Moscow's National Dance Day celebration annual summer event. "Dance is my outlet and where I turn to when I need to shake off my stress," she said. "Don't be surprised if you see me bustin' a move backstage at Miss USA!"

Baylee Jensen, Miss Utah USA 2017

Courtesy of Baylee Jensen
With 15 years of dance experience, Baylee has been a dancer for several national dance teams. She trained at Center Stage in Orem, Utah, growing up in a wide array of styles including jazz, ballet, contemporary, hip hop and ballroom. She went on to dance in high school on her drill team where they were State and National Champions all three years. She's traveled all across the state of Utah, California, Nevada, Colorado and Florida competing. She finished up as a dancer at Utah State University, home of the Aggies, as an "Aggiette" dancer.

Jasmine Fuelberth, Miss Nebraska USA 2017

Courtesy of Jasmine Fuelberth
Jasmine started taking dance lessons when she was 5 years old and continued through her senior year of high school, studying tap, ballet, hip hop, and jazz. She said lyrical/contemporary was "always my favorite." She also was on her high school dance team, which went to Nationals in her sophomore and senior years. "Dance has helped me in so many ways: stage presence for pageants and modeling, confidence, teamwork, focus, and not to mention a fun way of exercising to improve muscle tone," she said. "I have enjoyed all of the experiences dance has brought me throughout the years!"

Madelynne Grace Myers, Miss Kentucky USA 2017

Courtesy of Madelynne Grace Myers
Madelynne began her training in dance at age 8 with 360 Dance Studio in Louisville, Kentucky. In her third year, she qualified for the All-Star performance group of the studio, which won several Universal Dance Association (UDA) competitions in Orlando, Florida. Her team also competed — and won — many other competitions including Showbiz. Currently, she dances for her college sorority recruiting/talent shows, as well as Vanderbilt University entertainment events (Dance Marathon and Best Buddies).

https://www.dance.com/miss-usa-2017-dancers-2392423239.html