"Dancing with the Stars" Finale Kicks Off Tonight - East Idaho News
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“Dancing with the Stars” Finale Kicks Off Tonight

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ABC 112414 DWTSFinaleWeek?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1416827532948ABC/Adam Taylor(LOS ANGELES) — New Dancing with the Stars champions will be crowned this week.

Only four couples remain in the ABC competition heading into part one of the 19th-season finale on Monday night. They will perform both a freestyle routine as well as a judges’ choice.

The show will award its Mirror Ball Trophy to the winners the following night.

The final four couples are Bethany Mota and Derek Hough; Janel Parrish and Valentin Chmerkovskiy; Alfonso Ribeiro and Witney Carson; and Sadie Robertson and Mark Ballas.

Las Vegas oddsmaker Johnny Avello has tabbed Ribeiro as the front-runner among the celebrities. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air actor knows he’s a popular choice, but he also understands that he needs to take care of business in the ballroom if he wants to take home the Mirrorball Trophy.

He tells ABC News Radio, “I think this year the competition is as tight as it’s ever been on the show. I think that literally I look at it and I say any one of the four couples could win.”

Parrish and her partner, Chmerkovskiy, believe a triumph in the finals would validate the effort they put in throughout the season. Parrish says, “We’ve built this amazing team for the last four months and we’ve worked really hard, and I think it would mean the world to us to win together.”

If Mota and Hough are named the champions this week, Mota will owe much of her success to her partner, whom she relied on to create their routine for their freestyle dance. The YouTube star laments, “I wish I was able to give more input, but I’m not because I don’t do this. I really have no idea how to help.”

Monday’s performance show airs on ABC at 8 p.m. Eastern time. The winner will be announced Tuesday night during a two-hour results show that begins at 9 p.m. Eastern time.


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