Former Olympic winner wins 'Dancing with the Stars'

Apolo Anton Ohno, two time Olympic gold medallist, with his partner Julianne Hough, won ‘Dancing with the Stars’, a dance-based reality show in the U.S. Ohno.

Ohno, a champion speed skater and Hough, a first-time "Dancing" professional partner emerged victorious after beating former `N Sync band member Joey Fatone.

The season finale of the popular show saw Ohno, Fatone and World champion boxer Laila Ali, daughter of Muhammad Ali competing for the title. She and her partner, Maksim Chmerkovskiy, earned the lowest score from the judges, and fans failed to make up the difference.

25 year old Ohno gained popularity for the effort he put in to master the moves. He put in the same hard work that he has been putting on ice in order to win the mirror-ball trophy. His sports coach John Schaeffer said, “Apolo's competitiveness is almost on the verge of insanity”.

Fatone, known for his quirky costumes including a Tango themed on ‘Star Wars’ complete with light sabre, said that he felt like a winner after congratulating the winning duo.

The show based on a British show called ‘Strictly Come Dancing’, has had four seasons in the U.S and its format has spread to as many as 29 countries including Poland, India, Chile and Germany. The ten-week long show features celebrities with no expertise in dancing teamed with professional dancers. Three judges rate the ball-room and Latin dance skills while viewers vote with the help of the phone or the internet.

Behind the scenes episodes also allow personal glimpses into the lives of the stars. The combined scores decide the fate of the contestants. The lowest scoring couple is eliminated each week.

The season finale on Tuesday also featured performances by each of the stars who had been eliminated each week, namely, Paulina Porizkova, Shandi Finnessey, Leeza Gibbons, Clyde Drexler, Heather Mills, John Ratzenberger, Billy Ray Cyrus and Ian Ziering. Former winners include soap-opera star Kelly Monaco, NFL player Emmitt Smith and former member of musical band 98 degrees, Drew Lachey.

Ohno was the first to rate a perfect score of thirty for his Samba in April on the show and was a hands-on favourite to win the show. Fatone and Ali subsequently managed perfect scores in succeeding episodes.

Tuesday’s season finale saw all three contestants receive perfect scores for their respective performances. In the end it wasn’t Fatone`s showmanship or Ali`s graceful moves that won the competition but Ohno`s determination.

"You put your mind to something, you give 100 per cent, sacrifice and dedication, anything is possible", said a visibly elated Ohno.