Official Dancing With the Stars: Spring 2018 Athlete edition

DWTS is back for another short but spring season. It's a 4 week season with 10 couples and it's all athlete's this time. Two couples will be eliminated each week and they will start with two dances. Myself and Imzadi are going to be cohosting this season. Show starts April 30th, announcement is April 9th! Finale will be 5/21

The Athlete "Stars":
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
- Retired NBA Basketball legend, record six-time NBA Champion & Most Valuable Player (MVP)
Johnny Damon - retired Major League Baseball player: Cleveland Indians, previously Tampa Bay Rays, Detriot Tigers, NY Yankees
Mirai Nagasu
- Ice figure skater was in Olympics 2018
Chris Mazdzer - Luger, Olympics silver medal winner, 2018
Josh Norman - NFL football player for the Washington Redskins
Jennie Finch - Retired softball pitcher, Olympics team silver medal winners, 2008
Tonya Harding - Retired ice figure skater
Jamie Anderson - Snowboarder, Olympics gold medal winner, 2014
Adam Rippon - Ice figure skater, Olympics bronze medal winner, 2018
Arike Ogunbowale- Woman's basketball player at University Norte Dame

The Athletes and their dance Pro Partners:

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar & Lindsay
Johnny Damon & Emma
Mirai Nagasu & Alan
Chris Mazdzer & Witney
Josh Norman & Sharna
Jennie Finch & Leo
Tonya Harding & Sasha
Jamie Anderson & Artem
Adam Rippon & Jenna
Arike Ogunbowale & Gleb

Um...Johnny Damon used to be quite the eye-candy on the Boston Red Sox. Let's not leave them off the list. I have a problem with all the ice skaters. they have an edge over everyone else, because dancing is part of their routine.
 
Um...Johnny Damon used to be quite the eye-candy on the Boston Red Sox. Let's not leave them off the list. I have a problem with all the ice skaters. they have an edge over everyone else, because dancing is part of their routine.

Thank you! I'll add that!
 
I've heard of just over half of the athletes (never heard of Chris Mazdzer, Josh Norman, Jamie Anderson and Arike Ogunbowale - interesting that they have a college athlete on this season :scratchin) so I'm definitely looking forward to this season. Wonder why it's just 4 weeks long?

Lindsay is going to have a huge (pun intended) challenge with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's height (7'2")!

I'm definitely rooting for Adam Rippon, despite the fact that as a figure skater he has a huge advantage over everyone else. :) Love that Jenna is back!
 


the original season was always intended to be 4 weeks and it be a junior dancing with the season, however that got delayed so they tried this. the 4 week show allows them to get more athletes that aren't restricted with a tight schedule.

this also may be len's last season if not the fall season.

alan had a cancer scare just recently, so the scar on his neck is from the surgery to remove the tumor on his thyroid

9 days and counting till season premiere though!
 
Kym & Robert's twins were born yesterday. A boy & a girl.

EDITED: The babies names are: Hudson Robert & Haven Mae.

Pic:
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bh77KY2nvNi/******&taken-by=kymherjavec5678
 
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Week 1 Dances:

Adam Rippon and Jenna – Cha Cha (Song: “Sissy That Walk” by RuPaul)

Arike Ogunbowale and Gleb – Salsa (Song: “Them Girls” by Whitney Myer)

Chris Mazdzer and Witney – Salsa (Song: “Mr. Put It Down” by Ricky Martin featuring Pitbull)

Jamie Anderson and Artem – Viennese Waltz (Song: “Feeling Good” by Avicii)

Jennie Finch Daigle and Keo – Foxtrot (Song: “All-American Girl” by Carrie Underwood)

Johnny Damon and Emma – Foxtrot (Song: “Centerfield” by John Fogerty)

Josh Norman and Sharna – Cha Cha (Song: “Finesse” by Bruno Mars)

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Lindsay – Cha Cha (Song: “Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours)” by Stevie Wonder)

Mirai Nagasu and Alan – Salsa (Song: “No Excuses” by Meghan Trainor)

Tonya Harding and Sasha – Foxtrot (Song: “When You Believe” by Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey)


Also first post will have the updated voting info!
 


I'm surprised they have a college athlete as the end of April, beginning of May is finals crunch time. I wonder how she is gong to juggle the show and her exams.
 
I'm surprised they have a college athlete as the end of April, beginning of May is finals crunch time. I wonder how she is gong to juggle the show and her exams.
Maybe she is taking the semester off...she was also just in the NCAA tournament so she probably hasn't been in classes this semester at all? Not sure how that works, but I have hear that D1 athletes get a lot of leeway.
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I just read an article about a football player who is also a hip-hop producer and how the NCAA almost ruled him ineligible to play football because of the money he was making through his music career...which doesn't make sense to me as the money he made wasn't football-related? But that made me wonder about Arike and whether or not she can get paid to be on Dancing with the Stars, and still be eligible to play NCAA basketball. Turns out the answer is that she CAN get prize money from the show: https://www.usatoday.com/story/spor...e-dame-arike-ogunbowale-ncaa-rules/513985002/
 
Maybe she is taking the semester off...she was also just in the NCAA tournament so she probably hasn't been in classes this semester at all? Not sure how that works, but I have hear that D1 athletes get a lot of leeway.
---------------------------

I just read an article about a football player who is also a hip-hop producer and how the NCAA almost ruled him ineligible to play football because of the money he was making through his music career...which doesn't make sense to me as the money he made wasn't football-related? But that made me wonder about Arike and whether or not she can get paid to be on Dancing with the Stars, and still be eligible to play NCAA basketball. Turns out the answer is that she CAN get prize money from the show: https://www.usatoday.com/story/spor...e-dame-arike-ogunbowale-ncaa-rules/513985002/

The NCAA rules are pretty crazy. I'm not sure how they are allowing her to participate when their rule is they cannot make money off of their basketball skills and they are saying being on DWTS is unrelated to her basketball skills, yet the only reason she is on there is because of her basketball skills lol. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad she is on the show. Apparently she cannot promote herself like being on the commercials for the show or asking people to vote for her, not sure how she can win when everyone will be front and center and she will be in the background, but if she can dance really well, hopefully that will be all she needs to win.
 
The NCAA rules are pretty crazy. I'm not sure how they are allowing her to participate when their rule is they cannot make money off of their basketball skills and they are saying being on DWTS is unrelated to her basketball skills, yet the only reason she is on there is because of her basketball skills lol. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad she is on the show. Apparently she cannot promote herself like being on the commercials for the show or asking people to vote for her, not sure how she can win when everyone will be front and center and she will be in the background, but if she can dance really well, hopefully that will be all she needs to win.
I totally agree with the part of your quote that I bolded! That does not make sense to me! :confused3

Now that I think about it, the "can't promote herself" thing may explain why her "portrait" is different from everyone else's...the last time I looked at this slideshow, her picture was a cell phone snapshot or something. This time she's in the jersey but not a dancing outfit like everyone else...but if she's in her jersey that sort of speaks to what you said about making money from basketball, right?? I just don't get it.

http://ew.com/tv/dwts-athletes-edition-official-portraits/#lets-play-ballroom
 
I totally agree with the part of your quote that I bolded! That does not make sense to me! :confused3

Now that I think about it, the "can't promote herself" thing may explain why her "portrait" is different from everyone else's...the last time I looked at this slideshow, her picture was a cell phone snapshot or something. This time she's in the jersey but not a dancing outfit like everyone else...but if she's in her jersey that sort of speaks to what you said about making money from basketball, right?? I just don't get it.

http://ew.com/tv/dwts-athletes-edition-official-portraits/#lets-play-ballroom

The only thing I can think of with that jersey shot of her with no partner is maybe she is still at Notre Dame doing her school work. It's possible her partner has flown out to where she is to practice so she will miss as little school as possible, although they could have done a photo shoot where she is. The other thing, posing in the team jersey is probably Notre Dame property, so the school will probably make money off of that, not her so satisfies NCAA rules??? It's crazy how much money these schools make off these kids and the kid gets nothing. Okay, okay, I know they get a free education, but still....
 
The only thing I can think of with that jersey shot of her with no partner is maybe she is still at Notre Dame doing her school work. It's possible her partner has flown out to where she is to practice so she will miss as little school as possible, although they could have done a photo shoot where she is. The other thing, posing in the team jersey is probably Notre Dame property, so the school will probably make money off of that, not her so satisfies NCAA rules??? It's crazy how much money these schools make off these kids and the kid gets nothing. Okay, okay, I know they get a free education, but still....
It's all very *interesting.* They are essentially professional athletes, and yet... :confused3

To get back on-topic, as usual, some of those song choices are super on-the-nose!
 
The NCAA rules are pretty crazy. I'm not sure how they are allowing her to participate when their rule is they cannot make money off of their basketball skills and they are saying being on DWTS is unrelated to her basketball skills, yet the only reason she is on there is because of her basketball skills lol.

Decades ago, the Olympics used to have similar rules where athletes could not make ANY money from their sport, or they'd be considered "professionals" instead of "amateurs" and that would disqualify them from competing. But, that put such a burden on the parents to make all the money for their training. Meanwhile, the Russians & Chinese where winning all the medals as their governments were funding their training & coaches, so they could still stay "amateurs." Some sports, like ice skating, have to be done in Olympic size rinks, so the skater can skate the full routines in the size rink they will be competing in. Not, practice squished in their local rinks, and then have to spread out their routine during the Olympic events, which throw them off. :headache:

Finally, the Olympics allowed athletes to have corporate sponsors. But, parents still had to pay a lot of money to get their kids trained enough for the corporations to notice them. And, I think, finally the Olympics relaxed the rules enough to allow the athletes to be able to make some money at their sports and compete.

The NCAA may have rules similar, so that their athletes can make money in something that doesn't use their basketball skills, yet clearly they wouldn't be doing that event had they not gotten famous for being in basketball. :rolleyes1 So she can probably dance around, but not wear the NCAA uniform and definitely not throw any basketballs or any other balls around while dancing.

Arike Ogunbowale was also the only athlete to not appear at the GMA reveal. And Robin & Tom basically said, "And there is one more contestant who will be on the show. . ." and didn't name her. I thought at the time, they still hadn't locked her in yet, but perhaps they were trying to side step how to include her that would fit into the NCAA rules, so she won't get penalized by them.

For the first time during the reveal, Tom didn't say what ANY athlete was famous for. :headache: I had to Google almost every one of the athletes to come up with a description for the OP. :badpc: I thought, maybe after all these 20+ seasons, he basically got tired and kind of skimped on doing the reveal. Also, he usually does the reveals with Lara Spencer, who describes all the stars, but she wasn't on that day. I've noticed Lara is on GMA, less & less all the time. She's now down to 2-ish mornings. And they've replaced her for one morning with the dumb-*** blonde from The View. :headache: Tom did shrug at the end of the reveals, so maybe that was his way of showing that even he knows he left out all the descriptions of everyone while introducing them. But what could he do with the NCAA possibly tying his hands? :confused3 So, instead of not describing one athlete's professional/famous credits, which would seem obvious, he didn't describe what any of them do.
 
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Decades ago, the Olympics used to have similar rules where athletes could not make ANY money from their sport, or they'd be considered "professionals" instead of "amateurs" and that would disqualify them from competing. But, that put such a burden on the parents to make all the money for their training. Meanwhile, the Russians & Chinese where winning all the medals as their governments were funding their training & coaches, so they could still stay "amateurs." Some sports, like ice skating, have to be done in Olympic size rinks, so the skater can skate the full routines in the size rink they will be competing in. Not, practice squished in their local rinks, and then have to spread out their routine during the Olympic events, which throw them off. :headache:

Finally, the Olympics allowed athletes to have corporate sponsors. But, parents still had to pay a lot of money to get their kids trained enough for the corporations to notice them. And, I think, finally the Olympics relaxed the rules enough to allow the athletes to be able to make some money at their sports and compete.

The NCAA may have rules similar, so that their athletes can make money in something that doesn't use their basketball skills, yet clearly they wouldn't be doing that event had they not gotten famous for being in basketball. :rolleyes1 So she can probably dance around, but not wear the NCAA uniform and definitely not throw any basketballs or any other balls around while dancing.

Arike Ogunbowale was also the only athlete to not appear at the GMA reveal. And Robin & Tom basically said, "And there is one more contestant who will be on the show. . ." and didn't name her. I thought at the time, they still hadn't locked her in yet, but perhaps they were trying to side step how to include her that would fit into the NCAA rules, so she won't get penalized by them.

Also, for the first time during the reveal, Tom didn't say what ANY athlete was famous for. :headache: I had to Google almost every one of the athletes to come up with a description. :badpc: I thought, maybe after all these 20+ seasons, he basically got tired and kind of skimped on doing the reveal. Also, he usually does the reveals with Lara Spencer, who describes all the stars. Yet, I've noticed Lara is on GMA, less & less all the time. She's now down to 2-ish mornings. And they've replaced her for one morning with the dumb-*** blonde from The View. :headache: Tom did shrug at the end of the reveals, so maybe that was his was of showing that even he knows he left out all the descriptions of everyone while introducing them. But what could he do with the NCAA possibly tying his hands? :confused3 So, instead of not describing one athlete's professional/famous credits, which would seem obvious, he didn't describe what any of them do.

It just looks ridiculous.

I wonder when they asked her if they weren't aware of all the rules she would have to undergo in order to be on the show. So what are they going to do when they talk to them for the first time on the show, never ask what they do or just ask everyone else except her??? So silly.
 
TMZ posted this today from some other betting site as to betting odds for the contestants. The lower number means the better their odds.


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Johnny Damon said he believes there will be 2 going home the first week. Doesn't know about weeks 2 & 3.
 
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Kareem comes to Milwaukee a lot to watch the Bucks. He had or has some type of cancer, I think it is leukemia. Hopefully he is in remission. He was in a suite next to us, when they retired his number with the Bucks.
 
That's probably what they will be doing since it is only 4 weeks long.

But, that will leave 4 couples for the fourth week? :confused3

Unless they get rid of 1-2 couples that fourth Monday and do the finals the next nite on Tues with the remaining couples? :scratchin
 
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