Early life

Chmerkovskiy was born January 17, 1980, in Odessa, Ukrainian SSR to parents Aleksandr "Sasha" Chmerkovskiy and Larisa Chmerkovskaya. He began dancing at age 4. He has a younger brother, Valentin Chmerkovskiy (born 1986), who is also a professional dancer. His father is Jewish and his mother is Christian, and he has described himself as Jewish.

At age 13, he broke his right leg in a skiing accident and had a titanium rod put in to stabilize his leg. Doctors foresaw long-term difficulties and little possibility of a dancing career; however, he recovered and was dancing again six months later. He eventually became a professional Latin Ballroom dancer, with the details of the recovery from the accident presented on a 2010 episode of the television show Celebrity Ghost Stories.

The family immigrated to Brooklyn, New York in 1994. The challenges of immigration for Chmerkovskiy and his family included financial and language barriers. Chmerkovskiy's Ukrainian ancestry and cultural heritage were referred to on an episode of Dancing with the Stars.

Career

Competitive Dancing

As a dancer, Chmerkovskiy competed as under the professional level in the International Latin category. With partner Elena Grinenko, with whom Chmerkovskiy competed with from 2002-2005, Chmerkovskiy achieved the rank of 2nd in the United States and 7th in the world among professional international Latin couples.

Dancing titles

• 2005 Yankee Classic Professional Latin Champion
• 2005 Blackpool Dance Festival Semi-Finalist
• 2004 Manhattan Dancesport Professional Latin Champion
• 2004 Nevada Star Ball Champion
• 2004 World Masters Finalist
• 2004 Moscow Kremlin Cup Finalist
• 2004 Philadelphia Dancesport Festival Champion
• 2003 All England Champion
• 2003 Ohio Star Ball Latin Champion
• 2003 La Classique du Quebec Champion

Opening Dance Studios

At age 16, Chmerkovskiy and his father opened a youth-oriented competitive dance studio, Rising Stars Dance Academy, on the second floor of a building his father owned in Ridgewood, New Jersey. Chmerkovskiy said he chose New Jersey because there was a plethora of dance studios that he disliked already established in Brooklyn. The studio relocated a few times until it ended up in Saddle Brook, New Jersey. He said in 2011 of choosing a New Jersey location, "I didn't want to open a studio that would become just one of the studios in the area. I wanted to open my studio somewhere where there was nothing like it and where people would look at it with no preconceived notions."

In 2001, Chmerkovskiy had his first major success as an instructor when he helped his brother, Valentin, then 16, and Diana Olonetskaya, 15—became the first U.S. dance pair to win a world junior championship. Chmerkovskiy also taught Serge Onik, a dancer who appeared on the eleventh season of So You Think You Can Dance in 2014, where Onik was eliminated just outside the top 10.

In addition to Rising Stars, Chmerkovskiy owns six social and competitive dance studios under the brand "Dance With Me." Five are in the New York metropolitan area (Glen Rock and Fort Lee in New Jersey, Glen Head, Long Island, SoHo, Manhattan and Stamford, Connecticut) and one is in Sherman Oaks, California.

Dancing with the Stars

Chmerkovskiy first appeared in the second season of the ABC series Dancing with the Stars partnered with actress Tia Carrere. The pair's most successful dance was their tango. They finished in sixth place. The following season, he and partner singer Willa Ford came in seventh place. Chmerkovskiy returned to Dancing with the Stars in March 2007 for Season 4, his time partnered with boxer Laila Ali. They made it to the finals and finished in third place. In Season 5 of Dancing with the Stars, he was partnered with Melanie Brown and the couple received second place. Following the season 5 finale, Chmerkovskiy reportedly told TV Guide Magazine he would not be returning to the show, something he later told People Magazine he said because of stress. Chmerkovskiy did not compete in Season 6, although he and former partner Melanie Brown made an appearance for the 100th episode.

He returned for the show's seventh season, this time paired with two-time Olympic volleyball gold medalist, Misty May-Treanor. Chmerkovskiy and May-Treanor were forced to withdraw from the competition in Week 3. During a practice for their jive, May-Treanor ruptured her Achilles tendon and required surgery. Her withdrawal gave them a finish in 10th place.

On February 9, 2009, Good Morning America announced that he would be paired with Denise Richards for the eighth season of Dancing with the Stars. They were eliminated second in the competition, giving the pair a finish of 12th place. In the ninth season, he was paired with actress Debi Mazar, during which they were eliminated fourth. Half way through season 9, Chmerkovskiy partnered Joanna Krupa for one week while Derek Hough was ill. Krupa and Chmerkovskiy danced an Argentine Tango and participated in the 70's themed group dance. In season 10, Chmerkovskiy, returning for his eighth season, was partnered with Erin Andrews. They ended up coming in third place during the two-hour finale on May 25, 2010.

For season 11, Chmerkovskiy partnered with singer and actress, Brandy. They made it to the semi-finals but were eliminated with a fourth-place finish. For Season 12, he was paired with actress Kirstie Alley. On week 3, his leg gave out causing her to fall heavily on him, earning 21 points (out of 30). The next week, Alley's shoe fell off during their routine. Judge Carrie Ann Inaba called Alley The Queen of the Unexpected Mishap; they earned 22 points. They made it to the finals and finished in second place.

For season 13, he was partnered with Hope Solo and they finished in fourth place. In Solo's book, A Memoir of Hope, she wrote that Chmerkovskiy treated her roughly, once slapping her during a rehearsal. Solo's claims were never corroborated.

For season 14, he was partnered with actress Melissa Gilbert. In week 4, while performing the paso doble, Gilbert hit her head on the dance floor and suffered a mild concussion. She was rushed to the hospital and was unable to be at the results show the following night. The couple was called safe. Chmerkovskiy also suffered an injury, pulling a muscle in his shoulder. The couple was eliminated four weeks later, finishing in fifth place.

For season 15, an All-Stars season, Maksim returned to the dance floor with previous partner, Kirstie Alley. In week 1, they received the second-lowest score, 19. In week 3, Alley and Chmerkovskiy danced a Cha-Cha-Cha, they scored 17 . Alley and Chmerkovskiy earned 24. Alley and Chmerkovskiy were eliminated in week 8 alongside Gilles Marini and Peta Murgatroyd in a double elimination.

In February 2013, Chmerkovskiy announced his departure from Dancing with the Stars for Season 16. Chmerkovskiy returned on the fifth week of Season 16 for "Len's Side-By-Side Challenge", where he danced with Anna Trebunskaya in an Argentine Tango with brother Val and his partner Zendaya and in a Jive with Jacoby Jones and his partner Karina Smirnoff.

On February 27, 2014, reports surfaced that after taking two seasons off, Chmerkovskiy would return for season 18.

For season 18, he was paired with Olympic ice dancer Meryl Davis. They were announced the winners on May 20, 2014, marking Chmerkovskiy's first win. At the end of Season 18, they had the highest average of any dancer of the show with a 28.4 average, and were tied for the most amount of perfect scores earning a total of 6.

Guest judge

For season 17, he was a guest judge during the semifinals in Week 10. Chmerkovskiy returned to the ballroom as a guest judge during Week 5 of Season 21. Chmerkovskiy again returned to the judge's desk in Week 5 of Season 22, switch-up week. Chmerkovskiy's fiancee, Peta Murgatroyd, was among the competing pros that week.

Season	Partner	Place
2	Tia Carrere	6th
3	Willa Ford	7th
4	Laila Ali	3rd
5	Melanie Brown	2nd
7	Misty May-Treanor	90 ! 10th
8	Denise Richards	92 ! 12th
9	Debi Mazar	92 ! 12th
10	Erin Andrews	3rd
11	Brandy Norwood	4th
12	Kirstie Alley	2nd
13	Hope Solo	4th
14	Melissa Gilbert	5th
15	Kirstie Alley	7th
18	Meryl Davis	1st

Dancing With the Stars performances

• Season 2 - With celebrity partner: Tia Carrere (Average - 23.0) (Placed: 6th)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Waltz / "What a Wonderful World"	6	7	7	Bottom Two
2	Rumba / "Emotion"	7	8	7	Safe
3	Tango / "Por Una Cabeza"	9	8	9	Safe
4	Foxtrot / "Dream a Little Dream of Me"	9	8	8	Bottom Two
5	Samba / "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)" Group Salsa / "Rhythm Is Gonna Get You"	7 No	7 Scores	8 Given	Eliminated

• Season 3 - With celebrity partner: Willa Ford (Average - 24.4) (Placed: 7th)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Foxtrot / "True"	7	7	8	Safe
2	Mambo / "Get Busy"	7	8	8	Bottom Two
3	Jive / "SOS"	7	7	8	Safe
4	Waltz / "You Light Up My Life"	9	9	10	Safe
5	Rumba / "Every Breath You Take"	9	9	9	Eliminated

• Season 4 - With celebrity partner: Laila Ali (Average - 27.0) (Placed: 3rd)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Foxtrot / "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)"	7	8	8	No Elimination
2	Mambo / "Maracaibo Oriental"	9	9	9	Safe
3	Tango / "Goldfinger"	7	7	7	Safe
4	Paso Doble / "Les Toreadors"	7	7	7	Safe
5	Rumba / "Put Your Records on"	9	10	9	Safe
6	Cha-Cha-Cha / "Hold on, I'm Comin'" Swing / "Rock This Town"	9 No	9 Scores	10 Given	Safe
7	Quickstep / "Part-Time Lover" Samba / "Brazil"	10 10	9 10	10 10	Safe
8	Waltz / "May Each Day" Jive / "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown"	9 9	9 8	9 9	Safe
9	Quickstep / "Walk Like an Egyptian" Cha-Cha-Cha / "She's a Lady"	10 10	10 10	10 10	Safe
10	Paso Doble / "España Cani" Freestyle / "Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)" Mambo / "Maracaibo Oriental"	10 9 10	9 8 10	10 9 10	Third Place

• Season 5 - With celebrity partner: Mel B (Average - 27.6) (Placed: 2nd)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Cha-Cha-Cha / "A Deeper Love"	8	8	8	Safe
2	Quickstep / "Take on Me"	7	8	8	Safe
3	Jive / "Sweet Soul Music"	9	9	9	Safe
4	Viennese Waltz / "Breakaway"	8	9	9	Bottom Two
5	Samba / "Spice Up Your Life"	10	9	10	Safe
6	Rumba / "A Woman's Worth" Rock 'n' Roll / "Rockin' Robin"	10 No	10 Scores	10 Given	Safe
7	Foxtrot / "Jimmy Mack" Paso Doble / "Free Your Mind"	8 10	8 10	8 10	Safe
8	Tango / "Personal Jesus" Mambo / "Mambo Jambo"	9 9	9 10	9 10	Safe
9	Viennese Waltz / "Somebody to Love" Paso Doble / "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction	10 10	10 10	10 10	Safe
10	Cha-Cha-Cha / "Car Wash" Freestyle / "The Way I Are" Mambo / "Mambo Jambo"	9 9 10	9 9 10	10 9 10	Second Place

• Season 7 - With celebrity partner: Misty May-Treanor (Average - 21.0) (Placed: 10th)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Foxtrot / "This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)" Mambo / "Black Mambo"	6 7	8 7	7 7	Safe
2	Paso Doble / "Take Me Out"	7	7	7	Safe
3	Jive / "Shake It"	Suffered injury			Withdrew

• Season 8 - With celebrity partner: Denise Richards (Average - 18.3) (Placed: 12th)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Cha-Cha-Cha / "Nothin' but a Good Time"	6	6	6	No Elimination
2	Quickstep / "We Go Together"	7	7	7	Safe
3	Samba / "Take a Picture"	5	6	5	Eliminated

• Season 9 - With celebrity partner: Debi Mazar (Average - 18.0) (Placed: 12th)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Salsa / "Complicacion" Foxtrot Relay / "The Best is Yet to Come"	6 Awarded	5 6	5 Points	Safe
2	Tango / "El Tango de Roxanne"	7	7*	7	Bottom Two
3	Samba / "Love Is in the Air"	6	5	6	Eliminated

• Score was awarded by stand in judge Baz Luhrmann.
• Season 10 - With celebrity partner: Erin Andrews (Average - 24.6) (Placed: 3rd)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Cha-Cha-Cha / "Tik Tok"	7	7	7	No Elimination
2	Foxtrot / "Love Story"	8	7	8	Safe
3	Waltz / "See the Day"	8	7	8	Safe
4	Tango / "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)"	6/7	6/7	6/7	Safe
5	Jive / "You Never Can Tell"	7	7	8	Safe
6	Samba / "When I Get You Alone" Swing Marathon / "In the Mood"	9 Awarded	7 9	9 Points	Safe
7	Team Cha-Cha-Cha / "Holiday" Quickstep / "Dancin' Fool"	8 9	8 9	8 9	Bottom Two
8	Argentine Tango / "Una Musica Brutal" Rumba / "Missing You"	9 8	10 8	9 9	Safe
9	Viennese Waltz / "February Song" Paso Doble / "U Got the Look"	9 10	9 9	9 10	Last to Be Called Safe
10	Samba / "Mi Swing Es Tropical" Freestyle / "Alone" Argentine Tango / "Una Musica Brutal"	10 9 Awarded	10 8 26	9 9 Points	Third Place

• Season 11 - With celebrity partner: Brandy (Average - 26.0) (Placed: 4th)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Viennese Waltz / "Cry Me Out"	7	8	8	Safe
2	Jive / "Magic"	7	7	7	Safe
3	Samba / "Put It in a Love Song"	8	8	8	Safe
4	Rumba / "This Woman's Work"	7/9	8/8	7/9	Safe
5	Quickstep / "I'll Be There for You"	9	9	9	Safe
6	Tango / "Holding Out for a Hero" Rock N' Roll Marathon / "La Grange"	8 Awarded	9 10	9 Points	Safe
7	Team Cha-Cha-Cha / "Bust A Move" Foxtrot / "Fever"	9 9/9	9 10	9 9	Safe
8	Waltz / "Dark Waltz" Cha-Cha-Cha / "Teenage Dream"	9 9	10 9	10 10	Last to be Called Safe
9	Paso Doble / "Firework" Argentine Tango / "Taquito Militar"	9 10	9 10	9 10	Eliminated

• Season 12 - With celebrity partner: Kirstie Alley (Average - 24.6) (Placed: 2nd)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Cha-Cha-Cha / "Forget You"	8	7	8	No Elimination
2	Quickstep / "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree"	7	6	7	Safe
3	Rumba / "Over the Rainbow"	7	7	7	Safe
4	Waltz / "The Flower Duet"	7	7	8	Safe
5	Foxtrot / "American Woman"	8	7	8	Safe
6	Samba / "Baby One More Time"	8	9	9	Safe
7	Team Cha-Cha-Cha / "We R Who We R" Jive / "La Bamba"	7/7 9/7	8 6	8 8	Safe
8	Argentine Tango / "Cite Tango" Salsa / "Cobrastyle"	9 8	9 9	10 8	Safe
9	Viennese Waltz / "One and Only" Paso Doble / "White Room" Winner Take All Cha-Cha-Cha / "Walkin' on the Sun"	9 9 Lost	9 9 This	9 9 Event	Last to Be Called Safe
10	Samba / "Magalenha" Freestyle / "Perfect" Cha-Cha-Cha / "Forget You"	9 9 10	9 9 10	9 9 10	Runner Up

• Season 13 - With celebrity partner: Hope Solo (Average- 23.3) (Placed: 4th)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Viennese Waltz / "Satellite"	7	7	7	Safe
2	Jive / "Girlfriend"	6	7	6	Safe
3	Cha-Cha-Cha / "Tonight I'm Lovin' You"	8	8	8	Last to Be Called Safe
4	Foxtrot / "You've Got a Friend in Me"	8	8	8	Safe
5	Tango / "Livin' on a Prayer"	8	8	8	Last to Be Called Safe
6	Rumba / "Seasons of Love" Broadway / "Big Spender" & "Money Money"	7 No	6 Scores	7 Given	Last to Be Called Safe
7	Samba / "Werewolves of London" Team Paso Doble / "Bring Me to Life"	8 9	8 8	8 9	Safe
8	Quickstep / "Valerie" Instant Jive / "The Best Damn Thing"	9 8	9 9	9 8	Safe
9	Paso Doble / "Can't Be Tamed" Argentine Tango / "Whatever Lola Wants" Cha-Cha-Cha Relay / "I Like How It Feels"	7 8 Awarded	7 8 4	7 8 Points	Eliminated

• Season 14 - With celebrity partner: Melissa Gilbert (Average- 22.9) (Placed: 5th)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Cha-Cha-Cha / "Ain't No Mountain High Enough"	7	6	7	No Elimination
2	Quickstep / "Dancing with Myself"	7	6	7	Safe
3	Jive / "Dog Days Are Over"	8	8	8	Safe
4	Paso Doble / "Conquest"	7	8	7	Safe
5	Salsa / "Aguanile"	7	7	7	Safe
6	Viennese Waltz / "Ooh Baby Baby" Motown Marathon / "Nowhere to Run"	8 Awarded	8 6	8 Points	Safe
7	Argentine Tango / "Marriage of Figaro" Team Paso Doble / "O Fortuna"	7 9	7 8	7 9	Safe
8	Foxtrot / "Maggie May" Samba (Trio Challenge) / "Hard to Handle"	8 9	8 9	8 9	Eliminated

• Season 15 - With celebrity partner: Kirstie Alley (Average- 24.2) (Placed: 7th)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Foxtrot / "Set Fire to the Rain"	6.5	6	6.5	Safe
2	Jive / "Non Non Rien N'a Changé"	7.0	7.0	7.0	Safe
3	Cha-Cha-Cha / "Moves like Jagger"	8.0	8.0	8.0	Safe
4	Charleston / "42nd Street"	7.5	7.5	7.5* / 7.5	Bottom Two
5	Quickstep /Mrs. Robinson Team Freestyle (Gilles) / Gangnam Style	8.5 9.0	8.5 9.0	8.5 9.0	No Elimination
6	Rumba / "Home" Group Country Western / "Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)" & "I Play Chicken with a Train"	9.5 Awarded	8.5 2	9.5 Points	Safe
7	Quickstep & Samba / "Sir Duke" Swing Marathon / "Do Your Thing"	8.0 Awarded	8.0 4	8.0 Points	No Elimination
8	Viennese Waltz / "Hallelujah" Paso Doble (Trio Challenge) / "Bring Me to Life"	9.0 8.0	9.0 8.0	9.0 8.0	Eliminated

^* The additional score of 7.5 was awarded by guest judge Paula Abdul.

• Season 18 - With celebrity partner: Meryl Davis (Average- 28.4) (Placed: 1st)

Week #	Dance/Song	Judges' score			Result
		Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli
1	Cha-cha-cha / "All Night"	8	8	8	No Elimination
2	Swing / "Big and Bad"	8	9	8	Safe
3	Foxtrot / "All of Me"	10	9/101	10	Safe
42	Argentine Tango / "Too Close"	10	9/103	10	No Elimination
5	Samba / "I Wan'na Be Like You (The Monkey Song)"	9	9/94	9	Safe
6	Tango / "Feel So Close"	10	105 /10	10	Safe
7	Salsa / Adrenalina Team Freestyle / "Livin' la Vida Loca"	10 10	106/9 10 / 9	10 10	Safe
8	Rumba / "Read All About It (Pt. III)" Celebrity Dance Duel (Samba) / "I Luh Ya Papi"	9 8	9/87 9/8	10 9	Safe
9	Jive / "Hound Dog" Viennese Waltz / "Just a Fool"	10 10	10/108 10/10	10 10	Last to Be Called Safe
10	Argentine Tango / "Montserrat" Freestyle / "Latch" Foxtrot & Cha-cha-cha Fusion / "Glowing"	10 10 10	10 10 10	10 10 10	WON
1Score from guest judge Robin Roberts 2For this week only, as part of the "Partner Switch-Up", Davis did not perform with Maksim Chmerkovskiy and instead performed with Valentin Chmerkovskiy. 3Score from guest judge Julianne Hough. 4Score from guest judge Donny Osmond. 5Score from guest judge Redfoo. 6Scores from guest judge Ricky Martin. 7Score from guest judge Abby Lee Miller. 8Score from guest judge Kenny Ortega

Theater

His professional work includes choreographing for the Wynn Las Vegas's water-based show Le Rêve. By 2008, Chmerkovskiy's contribution to Le Rêve included choreographing three numbers: “Tango”, “Paso Doble” and “Piece Montèe”. In 2014 Chmerkovskiy returned to Le Rêve to choreograph for a new scene as part of a $3 million upgrade to the production.

Chmerkovskiy choreographed and performed in the Dancing with the Stars Tour 2008-2009 winter tour. The tour kicked off on December 17, 2008 and was scheduled to stop in 34 cities.

In the summer of 2014, Chmerkovskiy appeared in multiple performances of the touring dance show "Ballroom with a Twist."

Sway: A Dance Trilogy

2014 was also the year when Chmerkovskiy started performing in Sway: A Dance Trilogy in Westbury, New York. Chmerkovskiy credits his father Sasha with the idea for Sway. Sway is a live ballroom dance show starring Maksim, his brother Valentin, and Tony Dovolani. The show also features other professional dancers from Dancing with the Stars, So You think You Can Dance, and dance instructors from Chmerkovskiy's Dance with Me studios. A few celebrities from Dancing with the Stars have appeared in the production as well. Sway is primarily broken into three distinct sections: a smooth, 40's nightclub inspired section featuring Dovolani, an urban and hip-hop influenced section featuring Val, and finally a more Latin and Miami oriented section featuring Maksim.

Maks and Val on Tour

On February 12, 2016, Maksim announced plans for a 45 city live tour with his younger brother, Valentin. The tour, titled Maks & Val Live On Tour: Our Way, is scheduled to begin June 15, 2016.

Broadway

Chmerkovskiy was a dancer in the Broadway production Burn the Floor when it opened on July 25, 2009. Chmerkovskiy was partnered with Karina Smirnoff for the first three weeks of the show's Broadway run, leaving to return to Dancing with the Stars. The pair learned their choreography for the production in just two days. Chmerkovskiy returned to Burn the Floor in November 2009 through January 2010, this time he partnered with Kym Johnson.

From July 9 to August 18, 2013, he starred in "Forever Tango", a Broadway musical, dancing and performing onstage with former dance colleague Karina Smirnoff.

Other work as choreographer

In addition to his choreography on Dancing with the Stars and La Reve, Chmerkovskiy has worked as a cheorographer on other projects. Chmerkovskiy choreographed a commercial for Propel water. Chmerkovskiy provided choreography for Zendaya's music video for the song "Neverland" from Broadway's Finding Neverland.

Other television

In the United States

In 2009, he participated in the ABC sport show called "The Superstars" and was paired with Freestyle Skier Kristi Leskinen. They won the competition.

Chmerkovskiy appeared on three episodes of General Hospital in March 2013 playing the role of Anton Ivanov, who dances with Kelly Monaco's character Sam Morgan during the Nurses' Ball.

In 2016, Chmerkovskiy and his brother, Valentin, both made cameo appearances in the Netflix series Fuller House, a reboot of the sitcom Full House.

Around the world

In 2011, Chmerkovskiy starred as "The Bachelor" in the Ukrainian version of the dating reality series. He later told a Ukrainian newspaper that he regretted doing the show, saying, "This kind of project is not for me."

As of 2012, he hosts the Ukrainian version of the game show The Cube.

Chmerkovskiy has also appeared as a judge on "Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa", the Indian version of Dancing with the Stars.

Other activities

On January 28, 2014, he appeared in a music video with country musician Stacy Burk. The video was shot at the JMJ Ranch in Thousand Oaks, California, and directed by Dave West.

Chmerkovskiy is one of the creators and directors of Dance Team USA, a nonprofit educational and charitable organization dedicated to recruiting, supporting, and training future DanceSport participants.

Personal life

Chmerkovskiy primarily lives in Fort Lee, New Jersey. Chmerkovskiy and his brother Val adopted an English bulldog in 2010.

He was engaged to his DWTS costar Karina Smirnoff, a fellow Ukrainian native, in 2009. He later dated another DWTS costar, Peta Murgatroyd, but the relationship ended in 2013 after 10 months. He was also in a "serious" relationship with model Kate Upton. In 2015, Chmerkovskiy confirmed he was once again dating Peta Murgatroyd. Murgatroyd also publicly confirmed the couple's reunion telling Radar Online, " the most generous man I have ever met and I’m very happy." Chmerkovskiy and Murgatroyd became engaged on December 5, 2015, when he proposed while onstage for a performance of Sway: A Dance Trilogy in Miami, Florida.

Chmerkovskiy's native language is Russian, but he can understand a little Ukrainian. Chmerkovskiy did not speak English when he moved to the United States. He says he learned English from reading street signs in Brooklyn.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]