‘Dancing with the Stars’ Winners: Where Are They Now?

Yup, the soap actress and her professional partner were the first-ever team to be awarded the famous Mirrorball Trophy when the show premiered back in 2005. And now, the Emmy-nominated actress is still going strong as a main character in General Hospital.

Meanwhile, Mazo competed in four more seasons before he moved on to co-run his dance school, Genesis Ballroom, with his wife, Edyta Śliwińska. Per IMDB, he and Śliwińska also produced a few fitness DVDs.

After winning season two, Lachey remained heavily involved in the series. He joined the Dancing with the Stars Tour and co-hosted for three weeks during the fifth season in Samantha Harris’s place.

As for Burke, she competed in 23 seasons, and made DWTS history by becoming the first woman to win two years in a row. Additionally, she now hosts her own podcast, called Burke In The Game.

After winning season three in 2006, the pair returned to compete in season 15’s all-star edition. Smith was praised all around for making dancing look “manly.” But since then, the athlete has retired from the NFL. In 2021, he teamed up with NASCAR racer Jesse Iwuji, to create Jesse Iwuji Motorsports—a NASCAR Xfinity Series team that will compete this year.

Their performances of both a freestyle and a samba proved that Ohno was not only born to speed-skate, but to dance as well. So it comes as no surprise that he returned to compete a second time in season 15.

Since then, the famous Olympian has retired and traveled abroad to pursue other business ventures, including manufacturing and infrastructure development. He also supports a number of causes, having partnered with organizations like Product Red and The Salvation Army.

Hough, on the other hand, pulled a Cheryl Burke and won two consecutive seasons before moving on to become a judge on the show. She also ventured into acting and appeared in popular titles like Burlesque, Rock of Ages and Safe Haven.

The three-time Indianapolis 500 champion barely beat out Spice Girl Mel B, who landed second place with her partner Maksim Chmerkovskiy. And since then, Castroneves (or shall we say Spider-Man?) has been busy speeding across racing tracks. The driver will return for the 2022 season, which will be his first full-time season in five years.

As if winning first place wasn’t achievement enough, the duo also received four out of the five perfect scores given out during the entire season. After season six, the former figure skater returned for week eight of the 25th season to perform a trio jazz routine. But outside of the series, Yamaguchi worked as a skating broadcast analyst on NBC, launched an active wear line and published a best-selling children's book.

Her partner, Ballas, competed in 17 more seasons, partnering with stars including Kim Kardashian, Melissa Joan Hart and Shawn Johnson—with whom he placed first in season nine. The record-breaking dancer has also been busy working on music with his wife BC Jean, under the name Alexander Jean.

Not only did Burke-Charvet dominate the seventh season of the competition, but she also spent some time as a co-host alongside Tom Bergeron. The TV personality also went on to launch her own store, an online community for moms, a series of fitness DVDs and a lifestyle app, Brooke Burke Body.

Meanwhile, Hough, better known as the Jack of all trades, snagged a record-breaking six wins as he continued to participate in the series. He also scored three Emmy Awards for Outstanding Choreography, served as a judge on World of Dance, appeared on NBC’s Nashville and returned to DWTS as a judge.

Fun fact: After the Olympic gold medalist and her partner won season eight, Johnson and Ballas reportedly dated for a short amount of time. And three years after her victory, Johnson competed in the show’s All-Stars edition and finished second.

In addition, Johnson made a few TV appearances and released three books, including her debut YA novel, The Flip Side.

After the show, Osmond teamed up with his sister Marie and did an 11-year residency in Las Vegas, while also returning to DWTS as a guest performer and guest judge. The triple-threat also competed on The Masked Singer and released new albums, including his most recent release, Start Again.

Osmond's dance partner, Herjavec (formerly Johnson), continued to compete on the series and later served as a judge on the Australian version of the show. She also released a fitness DVD and a book titled The 5678 Diet.

While the Pussycat Doll and her partner (who is clearly no stranger to the winner’s circle) were frontrunners all season, it was their jive and tango that led them to victory in the show's 10th season. The artist currently has her own fragrance, a clothing line, multiple acting credits and a Grammy Award nom under her belt. Plus, she serves as a judge on The Masked Singer. Talk about impressive.

We’re not surprised that the Dirty Dancing star won the title during her season (although, not without injury). Still, the experience didn’t slow her down one bit. The actress continued to take on roles in films and shows like In Your Eyes, Bittersweet Symphony, Red Oaks and Grey's Anatomy. And earlier this month, Grey released her memoir, Out of the Corner.

In one of the most dramatic seasons to date, Herjavec suffered from an intense neck injury. However, that didn’t stop the dancer and her pro-football partner from winning the entire thing. Former wide receiver Ward moved on to become a studio analyst for NBC's Football Night in America after his win, and by 2019, he ventured into coaching. He's now the wide receivers coach of the Florida Atlantic Owls.

The war vet helped his professional partner win her first-ever title on the show and simultaneously stole the heart of millions of viewers. And now, Martinez continues to do so as Alfonso Rivera in the syndicated action drama, SAF3. Meanwhile, Smirnoff, who hasn’t competed since season 22, revealed an interest in returning as a judge. And most recently, she appeared as a dancer in the 2021 film, Tango Shalom.

The Greenbay Packers star showed off his fancy footwork on the dance floor and managed to beat fellow finalists William Levy and Katherine Jenkins. Not to mention, he was the last man to win until season 19.

The former football player wrote three children's books, a memoir and a health and fitness book. and Murgatroyd, who has won twice, continued to compete on the series for 11 more seasons. She also starred in the 2018 film, Faith, Hope & Love.

Rycroft returned for the special all-star edition and, with her partner Dovolani, took home the gold (well, bedazzled Mirrorball Trophy). Following DWTS, Rycroft and her husband, Tye Strickland, had their own reality show, called Melissa & Tye, then launched a podcast together called Logically Irrational. Rycroft is also a host for CMT's reality series, Redneck Island.

As for Dovolani, he exited the show after season 22 and is now the Co-National Dance Director of Fred Astaire Dance Studios' International Dance Council.

Hough began a winning streak during his time with the American Idol alum, who totally impressed the judges with her footwork. Following DWTS, Pickler got her husband, Kyle Jacobs, to hop on the reality TV bandwagon with their CMT series, I Love Kellie Pickler. And from 2017 to 2019, she co-hosted the daytime talk show, Pickler & Ben with Ben Aaron.

The Glee actress revealed she never expected to win the competition until her last two weeks on the show—but this victory was totally deserved. The Grammy-nominated star went on to appear in plays, TV specials and films like The Little Mermaid Live!, Nobody's Fool and Dreamgirls. The songstress also released her debut EP in 2020, and you can now catch her on a few episodes of HBO's A Black Lady Sketch Show.

Dancing champion Chmerkovskiy officially left the show after season 25, but that hasn’t affected his momentum. In addition to touring with his brother Valentin, he’s been busy running a number of dance studios called Dance With Me. Davis has also stepped away from competing on the ice, but she and her partner Charlie White continue to perform in ice shows.

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air star proved he could do more than just “the Carlton” when he and two-time competitor Carson took home the win in 2014. After winning the trophy, Ribiero went on to host Unwrapped 2.0 and America's Funniest Home Videos. The star also showcased his directing skills on shows like Shake It Up, Young & Hungry and K.C. Undercover.

Actress and daughter of Bruce Willis and Demi Moore, Rumer injured herself earlier in the season, but she still managed to snatch the Mirrorball Trophy. In that same year, Willis made her Broadway debut as Roxie Hart in Chicago, and she went on to appear in shows like Pretty Little Liars, Army Wives, CSI: NY and Workaholics.

Like his brother Maksim, Val eventually left DWTS to pursue other ventures—including running their social dance studios.

Before she was a married woman and expecting mother, Irwin proved herself as a frontrunner for DWTS’s 21st season. Not to mention, her partner was a six-time winner at this point. Irwin appeared as a guest judge on season 16 of Australian Dancing with the Stars, and she currently stars with her mother and little brother in Crikey! It’s the Irwins.

DiMarco made history as the series’ first deaf contestant. After mastering the two-step, he’s gone on to earn some acting credits under his belt too, having guest starred in Difficult People, Switched at Birth and This Close. Per IMDB, he's currently working on the upcoming movie Notes.

Shortly after her successful 2016 summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, the USA gymnastics star showed off a different kind of floor skill. And not surprisingly, she continued to compete in events after winning DWTS.

Hernandez participated in the 2021 U.S. championships and even joined Simone Biles for her Gold Over America Tour. But outside of gymnastics, she landed a few minor roles, including Stuck in the Middle and Middle School Moguls.

Per Jennings’s official website, he left his football days behind and went on to become a sports show personality. By 2018, he published his best-selling book, The IF In Life, and he also authored two children’s books: Arcade and the Triple T Token, and Arcade and the Golden Travel Guide. And Slater, who is happily married to Sasha Farber, has kept the ball rolling as a pro dancer on DWTS.

If you need a refresher, the Hamilton star and his dedicated pro partner earned perfect scores in both their samba and salsa/paso doble fusion during the finale. As expected, Fisher is still taking the entertainment world by storm, with catchy tunes and at least two dozen acting credits to his name. You can expect to see him in the upcoming YA film, Hello, Goodbye, And Everything In Between. And his partner, Arnold, is still competing for a second win on DWTS.

The Olympic figure skater proved he was not only gold medal-worthy but Mirrorball Trophy-worthy as well, taking home the title during the all-athletes season. In 2018, he officially retired from competitive figure skating, and, since then, he released his memoir, Beautiful on the Outside. He also guest hosted RuPaul's Drag Race and appeared in Taylor Swift's music video for "You Need to Calm Down."

His partner, Johnson, is still very involved in the competition series. Just a year after her win, she tied the knot with fellow pro dancer Valentin Chmerkovskiy.

These two defeated Harry Potter star Evanna Lynch and Disney Channel star Milo Manheim, just to name a few. Bones has since landed his own show, Breaking Bobby Bones, on National Geographic, served as a judge on Who Will Rock You and hosted CBS New Year's Eve Live: Nashville's Big Bash. Meanwhile, Burgess continues to compete on the show, with Jesse Metcalfe and Brian Austin Green as her most recent partners. She's also currently a judge on the Australian DWTS.

The former Bachelorette and Bernsten beat out country music singer Lauren Alaina, actor/comedian Kel Mitchell and pop star Ally Brooke—and the competition was stiff. Aside from earning the People's Choice Awards for Competition Contestant of 2019 (for The Bachelorette), Brown wrote an autobiographical book called God Bless This Mess and made an appearance on The Celebrity Dating Game.

Her partner, Bersten, continues to compete as a pro dancer on DWTS, having made it to fifth place with Skai Jackson and fourth with Amanda Kloots.

To say that the Bachelor nation was thrilled to see yet another popular alum win first place feels like an understatement. After the show, Bristowe joined the Dancing with the Stars Live! Tour and she currently has her own podcast, called Off the Vine.

Also, fans will most likely see Chigvintsev again in season 31, but outside of DWTS, he is tying the knot with fiancée Nikki Bella.

Shumpert made history as the first NBA player to win first place, and considering his impressive moves, it was well deserved. Following the show, he and Karagach joined the Dancing With The Stars LIVE tour. And of course, Shumpert is still dominating on the basketball court.