Val Chmerkovskiy is finding solace in his 3-year-old son, Rome, after his shocking Dancing With The Stars elimination during Grammy Night.
“It’s OK to lose right?” Chmerkovskiy, 40, asked Rome in a Thursday, November 11, social media video.
Rome, whom the three-time mirrorball champ shares with fellow DWTS pro Jenna Johnson, was merely proud that his dad gave it his all on the dance floor.
“Yeah, you try your best,” Rome adorably replied. “If you don’t win [some] times, you try to do it so many times.”
Chmerkovskiy further acknowledged that it’s important to “learn how to do both,” meaning winning and losing.
“It’s OK to be sad when you lose for a little bit,” the dance pro acknowledged.
Despite two impressive performances during the Tuesday, November 10, live show, Chmerkovskiy and celebrity partner Jenna Dewan were eliminated just shy of the show’s coveted semifinals. (Johnson, 32, and her partner, Harry Shum Jr., are still in the competition.)
“People want you to win because you’re a great dancer,” Rome added. “[Whether] you win or you lose, you try again on a different day. If you wanna win, you need to move your body and do it so fast and then you win. You get the champion[ship].”
While Chmerkovskiy admittedly felt disheartened to have walked away from DWTS season 35 empty-handed, he felt “better” after speaking with Rome.
“I have you in my life,” Chmerkovskiy noted, before Rome added that he will “always” be his dad’s “friend.”
“You’re not my friend, you’re my son, which I love so much,” Chmerkovskiy clarified. “We’re also buds, right? … What did we learn about winning and losing?”
Rome further revealed that he discovered the importance of competitions is that “friends make you happy.”
“Friends make us happy, and that it’s OK to lose,” Chmerkovskiy explained. “As long as you try.”
Rome repeated, “As long as you try. I love you so much.”
Neither Chmerkovskiy nor Dewan, 45, harbor any grudges in the midst of their early departure from the ballroom competition.
“Every week is a shocker,” Chmerkovskiy, who also faced a one-week suspension earlier this season for making a controversial comment about judge Carrie Ann Inaba, told Extra on Tuesday. “It’s very competitive. A lot of great couples out there. Wishing everybody the best, and I’m gonna be rooting from home. I thought we had a great season.”
Chmerkovskiy and Dewan had been early frontrunners in the competition, which often sparked fan criticism of the Rookie actress’ prior dance experience.
“I keep saying that I knew it would be hard. I knew that would be a physically challenging situation. I didn’t realize how emotionally and mentally tough the whole process is too,” Dewan previously told Us last month. “It’s a good tough. That’s why you feel so alive while doing this. It’s all the good things, but with that comes all the colors. All the shades.”
Dancing With the Stars airs Tuesdays on ABC and Disney+ at 8 p.m. ET.
