Karina Smirnoff is known for her legendary dance moves and 16-season run on Dancing with the Stars. The former ABC star, who was born in the Soviet Union in 1978, began professionally competing in ballroom dancing at just 11 years old. She racked up numerous awards, and is a “five-time U.S. National Champion, World Trophy Champion, and Asian Open Champion,” according to her website’s bio.
She made her way to the United States in 1993, and even double majored in Economics and Information Systems Programming at Fordham University in New York. Karina became a familiar face on American television when she joined DWTS as a pro for Season 3 in 2006, and finished in second place with Mario Lopez that season! She went on to compete with countless other stars like Billy Ray Cyrus and Mike Sorrentino, but it was J.R. Martinez whom she won the Mirrorball Trophy with in Season 13. She left the show in 2015, just before Season 20.
Karina was briefly engaged to actor Jason Adelman in 2015, but they ended the relationship that same year. Karina went on to welcome her first child, a baby boy, in the spring of 2020 (the father hasn’t been disclosed).
Karina is pictured here at the ‘LASplash Cosmetics’ launch event in Los Angeles on Aug. 21, 2017.
