A few days ago, ABC released the newest cast of their popular Dancing With the Stars, which returns to the ABC lineup on April 30th. If you haven’t already heard, the most interesting aspect of this year’s cast is that they are all athletes.
It’s an interesting concept since athletes have had a good success rate when it comes to winning the coveted mirror ball. Since its debut in 2005, there have been many athletes who have won throughout the 26 seasons. They include:
Season 3: Emmitt Smith – NFL player
Season 4: Apolo Anton Ohno – speed skater
Season 5: Hélio Castroneves – racecar driver
Season 6: Kristi Yamaguchi – figure skater
Season 8: Shawn Johnson – gymnast
Season 12: Hines Ward – NFL player
Season 14: Donald Drive – NFL player
Season 15: Melissa Rycroft – former NFL cheerleader
Season 18: Meryl Davis – ice dancer
Season 23: Laurie Hernandez – gymnast
Season 24: Rashad Jennings – NFL player
So it makes sense that they would want to do a complete athlete season. Let’s meet the competitors:
Adam Rippon: A figure skater who competed in the PyeongChang Olympics and won America’s heart, Rippon is considered the early favorite to win the trophy. I can see that. After all, he’s very popular right now and has great dancing skills on ice which should slide over to the Dancing with the Stars dance floor. He’s paired with Jenna Johnson, a great match. However, although figure skaters have a leg up, so to speak, on the competition because they already know how to dance, whether Rippon can work with a partner and get his timing right remains to be seen.
He was America's sweetheart on the ice, but will it translate to the dance floor? Welcome to #DWTS: Athletes, @Adaripp! pic.twitter.com/PLVLdEPu3n
— Dancing with the Stars (@DancingABC) April 14, 2018
I agree that he’s a favorite to win, but he has some strong competition, including:
Arike Ogunbowale: It’s interesting to note that Dancing with the Stars is not just a talent competition, but we all know it’s a popularity contest too. That’s going to make it particularly rough on Ogunbowale, who has been told by the NCAA that she cannot promote any of her appearance on DWTS if she wants to maintain her NCAA eligibility. So it’s going to be hard to get a fan base of the DWTS fans. Ogunbowale is a junior at Notre Dame and a member of their basketball team. She’s currently paired with Gleb Savchenko.
Chris Mazdzer: Another PyeongChang Olympic athlete, Mazdzer was the first-ever American athlete to win a medal in the Men’s Single Luge event. He’s paired with Witney Carson.
Jamie Anderson: I think Jamie might be a dark horse, but it will remain to be seen. Anderson is a female snowboarder and has won 15 X Games medals in her career. She also defended her gold medal in Pyeongchang. She’s partnered with pro Artem Chigvintsev and again it will be interesting to see someone who is used to a solo sport have to count on working with a partner.
So excited to be partnered with @artemchigvintse #DWTS https://t.co/DEXuhey07m
— Jamie Anderson (@JamieAsnow) April 13, 2018
Jennie Finch Daigle: Known for her softball abilities, Jennie may also be able to handle the dance floor too. She’ll be paired with pro partner Keo Motsepe.
Johnny Damon: Damon is a former Major League Baseball player for the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees. Damon has a quiet suaveness about him that might get him a larger fan base, even though I think he’s going to have to work hard for good performances. However, something tells me that he is going to be someone that will surprise the other contestants with how well he does.
Josh Norman: The highest-paid NFL cornerback in 2016, Norman has the skills to lay down some moves on the dance floor. Many football players have done well in this competition and it will remain to be seen if Normal can do the same, teaming with Sharna Burgess.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: I’m sure that most people see Abdul-Jabbar as the underdog of the competition. The 7’2” former NBA’s player tower over his dance partner Lindsay Arnold, Abdul-Jabbar doesn’t exactly scream dancing star. However, if he really has fun with it and lets loose, this legendary basketball player can definitely last a few weeks.
Mirai Nagasu: This figure skater can triple axel and three-and-a-half revolution like no other so if she brings her risk and strength to the dance floor, she can go far. She’s partnered with Alan Bersten.
Tonya Harding: This can go either way. Tonya has been back in the spotlight thanks to the movie about her life, I, Tonya. The movie has done really well, which might gain Tonya a cult following, and it might benefit her in the competition. But it’s been many years since Tonya’s competed in anything and her nerves might get the best of her because of her past. If she can put that behind her and enjoy her resurgence she might go far with partner Sasha Farber.
Legendary figure-skater Tonya Harding is heading to the ballroom on #DWTS: Athletes with @SashaFarber! pic.twitter.com/DYQH6ODPlC
— Dancing with the Stars (@DancingABC) April 13, 2018
It should be a fun season and we’ll track the dancers and give you the odds of who we think will win at Get More Sports.
