Dancing With The Stars has featured way more behind-the-scenes drama than normal this season. At first a lot of this stemmed from people fishing around about the decision to fire Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews. However, since then, Jeannie Mai had to quit and now pro Gleb Savchenko’s personal life is playing into the DWTS narrative. Here’s what’s happening and why his dancing partner Chrishell Stause has defended herself online.
Gleb Savchenko And Elena Samodanova Are Divorcing
News broke this week that the Dancing with the Stars pro are splitting after 14 years together. The 37-year-old dancer and his former partner share two kids together and now Elena Samodanova is leaving him, claiming he has cheated on her multiple times during the marriage.
In a statement to People and other outlets, Elena Samodanova’s accusations read thusly:
After 14 years of marriage, and multiple affairs, I’ve decided enough is enough. Gleb and I have created a family and multiple businesses together. But apparently, it just wasn’t enough to keep our marriage strong. Gleb’s ongoing infidelity and a recent inappropriate relationship has created turmoil in our marriage and absolutely torn our family apart. No wife should ever stand by and watch while another woman gifts her husband expensive presents, lures him out to dinners and seduces him at every turn. Last night was the final straw, and I can no longer turn my head the other way.
The news led to rumors circulating online that Gleb Savchenko’s current Dancing with the Stars partner Chrishell Stause may be responsible for the turmoil in his home life. Stause, known for Netflix’s Selling Sunset, and Gleb Savchenko himself have both denied the rumors that there was anything romantic going on.
How Chrishell Stause Is Defending Herself Against Cheating Allegations
The Selling Sunset star has come out to say she is not having an affair with her Dancing with the Stars partner, echoing comments that Gleb Savchenko made earlier. On Instagram Stories, she addressed the fact that “rumors” have been “swirling,” also noting that it has to be painful for their family, given she has also dealt with splits in the public eye. In addition she noted:
As you can imagine, the countless hours of training, and dance rehearsals has created a strong supportive friendship, but nothing more. I wish nothing but the best for both Gleb and Elena during this unfortunate time.
Dancing With The Stars’ History Of Romance
In the past, Dancing with the Stars has featured some major romances. Dancer Kym Johnson and Robert Herjavec notoriously found love during their time competing on the ABC series. Artem Chigvintsev and Nikki Bella also got together after their time competing on the show, and that's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to pro/partner romances. There have been dancer/dancer romances, as well. The most famous of these is probably Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Peta Murgatroyd, but Val Chmerkovskiy and Jenna Johnson, Sasha Farber and Emma Slater and Daniella Karagh and Pasha Pashkov are also married. Romance swirls often in the ballroom!
The point is, you spend all of this time in super close contact learning to tell stories with your body for Dancing with the Stars. So, it’s not a shock that those endorphins may eventually lead to romantic connections. Still, Gleb Savchenko and Chrisshell Stause are both saying that is not what happened this time.
The two notably were given comments relating to the sexy and sensual nature of their dances from the judges, but ultimately, they were sent home during the November 2nd episode. So, it should be the end of that chapter, no matter what the behind-the-scenes story is. Meanwhile, Gleb and Elena have said they plan to co-parent, so here's hoping the divorce itself goes as smoothly as it possibly could.
