Short Biography

Karina Smirnoff (born January 2, 1978) is a world champion professional dancer. She is a five-time U.S. National Champion, World Trophy Champion, and Asian Open Champion. Smirnoff has won the title at the UK Open, is a three time champion at the US Open, two time champion at the Asian Open, five time champion at the Dutch Open, five time US National Professional Champion. She is ranked 2nd in the world[citation needed], and took second at the British Open Blackpool Dance Festival. She is "the first woman to ever make the British Professional Final with three different partners". Smirnoff was born in Kharkiv, Ukraine on January 2, 1978. When she was five years old, she began taking ballet lessons, followed by gymnastics, aerobics, figure skating, ballroom dancing and piano. Eventually she chose to pursue ballroom dancing. In 1992, Smirnoff emigrated to the United States and became a U.S. citizen. Once in the U.S., Smirnoff took time off from studying dancing for school.

In 2008, Smirnoff announced her break from her boyfriend of two years after Lopez`s infidelity, Mario Lopez. Lopez had been Smirnoff`s celebrity partner during the Fall 2006 third season of Dancing with the Stars. She began dating a fellow Ukranian and fellow Dancing With the Stars dancer, Maksim Chmerkovskiy, in summer 2008. Just six months later they announced their engagement on December 31, 2008. Smirnoff and Chmervoskiy have performed professionally, at the 2007 ALMA Awards. In recent interviews, Smirnoff has announced that her most current celeb dance partner, Apple Computer co-founder Steve Wozniak, will give her away at her upcoming wedding ceremony.

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