| Maksim Chmerkovskiy | |
|---|---|
 Chmerkovskiy on May 2, 2007 |
|
| Born | Maksim Aleksandrovich Chmerkovskiy January 17, 1980 Odessa, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union |
| Occupation | Dancer Choreographer Instructor |
| Spouse(s) | Formerly engaged to Karina Smirnoff (2009) |
| Official website | |
Maksim Aleksandrovich Chmerkovskiy (Russian: Максим Александрович Чмерковский; born January 17, 1980) is a Ukrainian Latin Ballroom dance champion, choreographer, and instructor. He is best known as one of the professional dancers on the American television series Dancing With The Stars, on which he first appeared in season two. On Dancing with the Stars, he is often referred to as "the bad boy of the ballroom".
Contents |
Born on January 17, 1980, in Odessa, in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic of the former USSR, Chmerkovskiy began dancing at the age of four. His parents are Aleksandr and Larisa Chmerkovskiy.[1] His brother, Valentin Chmerkovskiy, is also a champion dancer.[2]
The challenges of Immigration for Chmerkovskiy and his family included financial and language barriers. A skiing accident as a child broke Chmerkovskiy's right leg. Doctors informed him that there would be difficulties with his leg and that dancing might not be possible.[3] However, he was able to make a successful recovery and went on to become a professional Latin Ballroom dancer.
Chmerkovskiy is the owner of three dance studios in the New York City area, one of which is the Rising Stars Dance Academy (RSDA).[4] The other two studios are social dance studios located in Ridgefield, NJ and Glen Head, NY.
Chmerkovskiy is one of the creators and directors of “Dance Team USA”, a non-profit educational and charitable organization dedicated to recruiting, supporting, and training future DanceSport participants. This sport is particularly popular with Eastern European families. Through his company “Maksim Chmerkovskiy Productions”, Chmerkovskiy organizes performances globally.
Chmerkovskiy is a ballroom and DanceSport choreographer. Among his professional works is the Wynn Las Vegas’ water-based show ‘Le Reve (show)’.[5] He implemented ballroom-inspired numbers to the Franco Dragone production.
Chmerkovskiy first appeared in the 2nd season of the ABC series Dancing With The Stars partnered with actress Tia Carrere. They finished in sixth place. The following season, he and partner singer Willa Ford came in seventh place. Chmerkovskiy returned to Dancing with the Stars in March 2007 for Season 4, this time partnered with boxer Laila Ali, the daughter of Muhammad Ali.[1] They made it to the finals and finished in third place. In Season 5 of Dancing with the Stars, he was partnered with Mel B and had his best finish to date; the couple received second place. Chmerkovskiy did not participate in season 6, although he and former partner Mel B made an appearance for the 100th episode.
He returned for the show's 7th season, this paired with two-time Olympic volleyball gold medalist, Misty May-Treanor. Chmerkovskiy and May-Treanor were forced to withdraw from the competition in Week 3 on October 6th, 2008. During a practice for their jive, Misty ruptured her Achilles tendon and required surgery. This withdrawal gave them a finish of tenth place.
On February 9, 2009 on Good Morning America it was announced that he would be paired with Denise Richards for the eighth season of Dancing with the Stars. They were eliminated second in the competition, on March 24, 2009, giving the pair a finish of 12th place.
In the ninth season he was paired with actress Debi Mazar. In which they were eliminated 4th.
With celebrity partner Mel B:
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' score | Result | ||
| Inaba | Goodman | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Cha cha cha/ "A Deeper Love" | 8 | 8 | 8 | Safe |
| 2 | Quickstep/ "Take on Me" | 7 | 8 | 8 | Safe |
| 3 | Jive/ "Sweet Soul Music" | 9 | 9 | 9 | Safe |
| 4 | Viennese Waltz/ "Breakaway" | 8 | 9 | 9 | Bottom Two |
| 5 | Samba/ "Spice Up Your Life" | 10 | 9 | 10 | Safe |
| 6 | Rumba/ "A Woman's Worth" | 10 | 10 | 10 | Safe |
| 7 | Foxtrot/ "Jimmy Mack" Paso Doble/ "Free Your Mind" |
8 10 |
8 10 |
8 10 |
Safe |
| 8 | Tango/ "Personal Jesus" Mambo/ "Mambo Jambo" |
9 9 |
9 10 |
9 10 |
Safe |
| 9 Semi-finals |
Viennese Waltz/ "Somebody to Love" Paso Doble/ "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" |
10 10 |
10 10 |
10 10 |
Safe |
| 10 Finals |
Cha cha cha/ "Car Wash" Freestyle/ "The Way I Are" Mambo/ "Mambo Jambo" |
9 9 10 |
9 9 10 |
10 9 10 |
Runner-Up |
With celebrity partner Denise Richards:
| Week # | Dance | Judges' score | Result | ||
| Inaba | Goodman | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Cha cha cha/"Nothin' but a Good Time" | 6 | 6 | 6 | Safe |
| 2 | Quickstep/"We Go Together" | 7 | 7 | 7 | Safe |
| 3 | Samba/"Take a Picture" | 5 | 6 | 5 | Eliminated |
With celebrity partner Debi Mazar:
| Week # | Dance | Judges' score | Result | ||
| Inaba | Goodman | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Salsa/"Complicacion" | 6 | 5 | 5 | Safe |
| 2 | Tango/"El Tango de Roxanne" | 7 | 7 | 7 | Bottom Two |
| 3 | Samba/"Love Is in the Air" | 6 | 5 | 6 | Eliminated |
Chmerkovskiy resides in Edgewater, New Jersey.[6] He began dating a fellow Dancing With the Stars dancer, Karina Smirnoff, in the summer of 2008. The couple announced their engagement on December 31, 2008.[7] On September 8, 2009 Maksim and Karina called off their engagement.[8]. Maksim has an all white English Bulldog named Sir Sleepalot (aka Sleep).
· 2005 Yankee Classic Professional Latin Champion[9]
· 2005 Blackpool Dance Festival Semi-Finalist
· 2004 Manhattan Dancesport Professional Latin Champion
· 2004 Nevada Star Ball Champion
· 2004 World Masters Finalist
· 2004 Moscow Kremlin Cup Finalist
· 2004 Philadelphia Dancesport Festival Champion
· 2003 All England Champion
· 2003 Ohio Star Ball Latin Champion
· 2003 La Classique du Quebec Champion
Chmerkovskiy and freestyle skier Kristi Leskinen won the 2009 edition of the Superstars. They had an impressive finish placing in the top of the pack in all weeks of the competition. In the final match, they were up against the team of Bode & Paige. Kristi & Chmerkovskiy remained victorious despite Bode & Paige winning the 1st event in the finale.
   | Dance with Me Studio - Dance With Me - Ballroom Dance & Social Dance Studios: Dance Lessons, Suffolk, Salsa, Swing, Waltz, Rumba, Mambo, Cha Cha |
| | The Stars Align for a fourth season of ABC's hit alternative series, Dancing With the Stars - Dancing With The Stars - Home - ABC.com |
| | ''Dancing With The Stars'' - Dancing With The Stars - Home - ABC.com |
| | BDCsocial - Ballroom Dance Channel v2.0 (Beta) |
|
|
Wikis
Quiz
Map
Misc
Search
