‘DWTS’ Val Chmerkovskiy Felt ‘Humbled’ During Major Losses
Professional dancer Val Chmerkovskiy might have several Mirrorball Trophies at home. However, he recently admitted he had a major learning curve when he first joined the show.
Over time, the Chmerkovskiy brothers established a strong name and reputation for themselves in the ballroom dance community. However, being an excellent dancer doesn’t always mean they’ll win Dancing With The Stars.
See what Val had to say about his first major losses on the show and how they helped him grow.
Val Chmerkovskiy’s Ego Prevented Him From Succeeding At First
Val Chmerkovskiy appeared on DWTS occasionally before becoming a full-time pro in Season 13. His older brother Maks Chmerkovskiy was already well-established as a pro dancer at that point.
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The Ukrainian dancer had spent most of his life in ballroom competitions. During his debut as a pro at age 25, he believed he could easily dominate the competition. However, his ego kept getting in the way of his success.
“My first season, I came in, I’m like, ‘These guys are all rich and fat. I’m gonna come in here with my technique and stamina and athleticism, and like, I’m just gonna run over everybody.’ And I didn’t. I got eliminated second, should have probably got eliminated first. I was humbled really quickly,” Val shared on a recent episode of The Lightweights Podcast.
“My first season, I thought I was gonna kill it on Dancing With The Stars and I didn’t,” Val continued. “Because there’s just [a] completely different skill set that you have to have. You have to be a great teacher, you got to be a great choreographer, you got to be a great performer. And performer is split into – as a dancer and as an on-camera personality. The OGs, the legends, the ones that have a lot of wins, are the ones that check out all three. Whereas in the competitive world, there’s just an athleticism and a physical discipline that you have to have.”
@ughitsjoe How Val Chmerkovskiy Got To Dance With Zendaya 💃🏼🕺🏼 @valentin #dwts #dancingwiththestars #zendaya ♬ original sound – Joe Vulpis
The Dancer Grew & Learned As A Performer
Fortunately, it seemed that Val Chmerkovskiy learned from his major losses. By his third season, he managed to finish in third place. During his fourth season, he and Zendaya finished in second place.
Since then, Val has gone on to win the Mirrorball Trophy three times. He won Season 20 with Rumer Willis, Season 23 with Laurie Hernandez, and Season 32 with Xochitl Gomez. He had the chance to pass the trophy to his wife Jenna Johnson this year when she and Joey Graziadei won Season 33.
Were you surprised to know Val Chmerkovskiy felt this way about his early days on the show? Add your own thoughts and ideas to the conversation below.
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