Hong Kong TVB actresses show their dance numbers at a press conference for Hunan TV's second season of "Strictly Come Dancing" on Monday, April 14, 2008. [Photo: Hunan TV]

After the success of last year's "Strictly Come Dancing," Hunan TV will launch a more powerful second season this Thursday.

Nineteen of the twenty competitors attended a press conference in Changsha on Monday, where they received their partners.

Chinese figure skating world champion Chen Lu was unable to attend the conference.

This year, Hunan TV was determined to add international factors in the program, so celebrities from Thailand, South Korea and France will compete in this season.

Yu Haoming is the only Super Boy who will take part in the event.

Other Chinese mainland stars include Yang Ruoxi, Niu Mengmeng, Zhang Junning, Gao Ziqi and Chen Lu.

Hong Kong's TVB group added two veteran performers, Eddie Kwan and Christine Ng. They will lead the other eight Hong Kong stars competing for top honors.

Hunan TV has also incorporated a dance contest for non-celebrities, a component which is not included in the first season.

The program will be televised on Hunan TV at 7:35 p.m. on Thursday.

Last year, Hunan TV introduced BBC's popular format "Strictly Come Dancing" to China. It's the first time that a Chinese mainland TV channel has purchased the original copyright of a UK dancing program.