Valentin Chmerkovskiy

Valentin Chmerkovskiy was born in Odessa, Ukraine, on March 24, 1986, to upper middle-class parents, Aleksandr and Larisa Chmerkovskaya, who were also well-known dancers. His parents ran dance studio back in their country. Valentin grew up with an older brother, Maksim, who also happened to be an aspiring dancer. Maksim also made several appearances on ‘Dancing with the Stars.’

Ukraine was in the midst of a political turmoil in the early 1990s and gained its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. A few mafia elements started hounding the family, and slowly, their successful business was disrupted. The family moved to the US in 1994 for better career opportunities. Valentin was 8 years old then and had already started his training in dance.

The early few months of life in the US were difficult for the family. They ran out of savings. Valentin’s father worked as a pizza-delivery boy for a while. Additionally, both Maksim and Valentin faced bullying in school.

The family soon settled in New York. Valentin’s parents established their own dance studio two years after moving to the country. Valentin was one of the students in the dance academy and also turned out to be one of the most skilled young dancers.

Valentin grew up around Brooklyn and New Jersey and attended ‘The Hudson School.’ Although dance was his true passion, he was also academically good. Valentin soon joined ‘Pace University’ and earned a degree in business management.

By the age of 8, Valentin had started training in dance. He specialized in ballroom dance. By 12, he became a highly proficient dancer. By then, he had won several national championships and had participated in his life’s first international competition, ‘The German Open.’

Valentin performed remarkably well and reached the final stages but could not win. His brother also participated in the same competition, and they were the only American participants in the tournament, which was an achievement in itself.

At the age of 15, he participated in the ‘IDSF World Championship’ and won the tournament. In the process, he became the first-ever American to achieve the honor. He teamed up with Diana Olonetskaya for the ‘World Junior Championship’ title.

By 2006, his older brother, Maksim, had gained significant fame in the American version of the dance reality show ‘Dancing with the Stars.’ Valentin made his debut on the show in its second season. However, he appeared as a student of his brother and was paired with Valeriya Kozharinova. The couple performed two numbers on the show.

He skipped the third season and made a re-entry in the fourth season in 2007. This time, too, he was not a participant and only appeared in a results show episode where he was pitted against his brother. The performance was widely appreciated and helped Valentin establish himself on the show.