It was a night of highs and controversy as series 14 kicked off in style.
Dancing With The Stars made a spectacular return with 11 celebrities braving the dance floor In An explosive night Of dancing.
Presenter/model Kyly Clarke top-scored with 35 points with an emotive contemporary dance the judges called “breathtaking” and “absolutely beautiful”. Todd McKenney said: “You have set the bar incredibly high.”
In the battle of the codes, AFL star David Rodan scored 34 points edging out NRL legend Matt Cooper on 28. David’s energetic Cha Cha had the judges applauding his “amazing rhythm”. “You have definitely thrown down the gauntlet,” Adam Garcia said.
With his open shirt and cheeky kiss to Helen Richey, Matt’s Cha Cha routine left the female judges flustered with excitement. “That was amazing,” Kym Johnson cooed. “You have the guns and the ammunition.”
Mark Holden fell way short of a touchdown with his Foxtrot earning the second lowest score of the night. “You’ve got the most work to do,” Adam said. “The only way is up.”
Olympic champion Torah Bright finished at the bottom of the leaderboard after judges criticised the lack of Foxtrot in her routine. Todd, who gave the performance just one point, said: “It was a freestyle routine at best. You can’t come out and do what you want. It’s not fair to anyone else in the competition.”
Final scores:
KYLY CLARKE & DAMIAN WHITEWOOD – 35
DAVID RODAN & MELANIE HOOPER – 34
APRIL ROSE PENGILLY & ARIC YEGUDKIN – 32
TAI HARA & JORJA FREEMAN – 32
RICKI-LEE & JARRYD BYRNE – 31
EAMON SULLIVAN & ASH-LEIGH HUNTER – 29
LYNNE McGRANGER & CARMELO PIZZINO – 29
ASHLEY HART & JULZ TOCKER – 28
MATT COOPER & MASHA BELASH – 28
MARK HOLDEN & JESSICA PRINCE – 19
TORAH BRIGHT & ROBBIE KMETONI – 15
Now the judges’ scores are final, it is up to the public to vote for their favourite celebrity to keep them dancing. For voting line information, visit the official website.
DANCING WITH THE STARS is live Tuesdays at 7.30pm on Channel Seven.
