Val Chmerkovskiy has no plans to say goodbye to Dancing With the Stars after his season 32 win with Xochitl Gomez.
“I would [return next season]. Listen, if they had me back, I’d love to be back. It’s going to be a tough season to follow,” Chmerkovskiy, 37, exclusively told Us Weekly on Tuesday, December 6, shortly after he and Gomez, 37, were the first pair to win the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy.
Tuesday marked the third time Chmerkovskiy brought home the trophy since joining DWTS in 2006. Chmerkovskiy and Gomez’s final performances included the foxtrot and freestyle dances to “Unconditionally” by Katy Perry and “Que Calor” by District 78, respectively. Their scores were 30 out of 30 for both.
“It feels great. This one feels a little different. It’s been seven years since I was able to be lucky enough to win and to win it with this young lady,” he gushed. “Man, she carried us all season. She made me look great as a teacher [and] as a partner.”
Gomez noted that she was just as grateful for Chmerkovskiy, adding, “That goes both ways. You can’t really know how to really do any of this unless you have someone who really understands you. So you really understood me and you did all the dances that had my personality in it. And I think that’s what’s important.”
For Chmerkovskiy, the win has meant even more since he became a father. “It’s amazing. I can’t wait to give this to my son,” the professional dancer, whose wife Jenna Johnson gave birth to son Rome in January, shared with Us. “He is going to want to eat this for sure. That is the first thing he wants to have.”
While Chmerkovskiy was paired off with Gomez this season, Johnson, 29, competed with Tyson Beckford. Before DWTS kicked off in September, the couple discussed their plans for competing against each other.
“We support each other, but we kind of vent to one another as well. So, it could be challenging,” Chmerkovskiy shared with Us that month. “It’s like you are living the stress of two couples because, obviously, we could have a great night and I’ll be very happy, but if she and [Tyson] have a bad night, it’s going to be a tough position to be celebrating in.”
Val said he and Johnson are attempting to prioritize a work-life balance. “[Parenting is] our common ground and we’ve talked about being better this season [with] leaving work at work and making sure that when we get home, we are focused on our boy and just our life,” he continued. “He’s sitting up. That’s a huge deal [because he’s able to] hold that big head up.”
With reporting by Hannah Kahn
