Sorry, Hope Solo.
The 30-year-old soccer star fell just short of Dancing With the Stars' 13th season finale after being eliminated along with her pro partner, Maksim Chmerkovskiy, on Tuesday's results show.
"This competition is one of the toughest competitions I've ever been a part of," Solo said. "I'm grateful. It was an amazing opportunity. We have the most amazing fan base and instead of the winning the mirrorball trophy, I'm going to try to win a gold medal this summer at the Olympics."
Praised by the DWTS judges for improving slightly from her paso doble to her tango, Solo finished at the bottom of the leaderboard with a mere 56 points out of 70, falling behind Rob Kardashian, Ricki Lake and J.R. Martinez. Frontrunner Martinez — who aggravated an ankle injury dancing Monday — also faced elimination.
"Maks put so much into [our Monday night] Argentine tango and it's something to be proud of," Solo told Us Weekly of her outspoken partner, who famously lashed out at head judge Len Goodman after the Brit declared their October 24 rumba their "worst dance of the season." "[Maks] basically broke his body picking me up and teaching me how to do this dance, and I pulled muscles doing it. It wasn't easy," Solo continued.
Though she ended her DWTS run alongside Chmerkovskiy on a high, Solo didn't always get along well with her pro partner.
Earlier this month, Solo told Ryan Seacrest she almost quit the ABC series because of her pro, who put a firm hand on her shoulder during a recent rehearsal in an effort to make a point.
"I want everybody to know out there that as a strong, independent woman that stands up for herself, I would never just let that go unnoticed," she told Seacrest. "Outside of the cameras, [Maks] knows that he was in the wrong. He will be the first one to stand up to that."
"I almost quit the show right then and there," she continued. "I almost walked out, but I told myself I am in this for the long-haul, through all the bumps and bruises."
Tell Us: Did Hope deserve to get the DWTS boot?
