‘Dancing with the Stars’: Spotlight on Ingo Rademacher and Kym Johnson

The new season of “Dancing with the Stars” kicked off on March 18 and soap star Ingo Rademacher and his pro partner Kym Johnson tied for third place on the leaderboard. They were the first couple to perform a contemporary routine, a new dance added for season 16. Carrie Ann Inaba thought the performance was raw and passionate, but Len called out Kym for the excessive number of lifts. Bruno compared Ingo to Bradley Cooper in “Silver Linings Playbook.” Ingo and Kym received a score of 20 and tied for third place with Jacoby Jones and Karina Smirnoff.

Soap opera star Ingo Rademacher is best known to audiences as the charismatic Jasper “Jax” Jacks on ABC’s “General Hospital.” He originated the role of Jax in 1996 and played the romantic hero for almost 18 years until he retired from “GH” in 2011. His other television credits include “Hawaii Five-O,” “Titans,” “Veronica’s Closet,” and “According To Jim.”

Ingo Rademacher DWTSIngo Rademacher DWTS

As an athlete, Rademacher has amassed an extraordinary list of accomplishments. When he was young, Ingo was a ski champion and a competitive equestrian. As an adult, he has competed at a high level in beach volleyball and triathlons (winner of the Nautica Malibu Triathlon, celebrity division for three consecutive years). He took the pole position in the 2005 Long Beach Grand Prix and recently completed in the grueling 32-mile Molokai to Oahu "Channel of Bones" stand-up paddle board race, Plus, Ingo loves racing dirt and street bikes. He moved to Hawaii in 2012 to pursue his passion for the sport of stand-up paddle board racing. He and his wife have two sons, Peanut and Pohaku.

Pro partner Kym Johnson was born in Australia and began dancing at the tender age of two. She’s a former Australian Amateur Ballroom and Latin champion and was a finalist in the U.K. Ballroom Championships in Blackpool. Other career highlights include dancing at Elton John’s 50th birthday party, appearing in the hit movie “Strictly Ballroom,” touring with “Burn the Floor,” and competing on three seasons of “Dancing with the Stars Australia.”

Kym first appeared on the U.S. version of “Dancing with the Stars” in 2006 when she competed during season three with partner Jerry Springer. Since then, she has danced on almost every season and won twice with partners Donny Osmond and Hines Ward.

Below are Kym’s past celebrity partners on “Dancing with the Stars”:

• Season 3: Jerry Springer (5th place)
• Season 4: Joey Fatone (2nd place)
• Season 5: Mark Cuban (8th place)
• Season 6: Penn Jillette (12th place)
• Season 7: Warren Sapp (2nd place)
• Season 8: David Alan Grier (9th place)
• Season 9: Donny Osmond (1st place)
• Season 11: David Hasselhoff (12th place)
• Season 12: Hines Ward (1st place)
• Season 13: David Arquette (6th place)
• Season 14: Jaleel White (7th place)
• Season 15: Joey Fatone (12 place)

“Dancing with the Stars” continues on Monday, March 25. Scores from week one and two will be combined with viewers’ votes to determine the first eliminated celebrity. Results will be announced on Tuesday, March 26.

Below is the “DWTS” leader board from week 1.

• Zendaya: 24
• Dorothy Hamill: 21
• Kellie Pickler: 21
• Aly Raisman: 21
• Jacoby Jones: 20
• Ingo Rademacher: 20
• Sean Lowe: 19
• Wynonna Judd: 18
• Victor Ortiz: 18
• Lisa Vanderpump: 18
• Andy Dick: 17
• D.L. Hughley: 12

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