The first two weeks in the ballroom have been a whirlwind — literally. But after 26 dances, the reality competition had to bid farewell to the first couple.
Going into the elimination, Olympic gymnast Laurie Hernandez and her partner Val Chmerkovskiy led the pack on the top of the leader board and former Texas governor Rick Perry and his partner Emma Slater trailed at the very bottom. The biggest shock of the evening came not at the end when one pair was eliminated, but about an hour in when Perry and Slater learned that they were safe.
Instead, Disney star Jake T. Austin, beloved Brady Bunch actress Maureen McCormick, model Amber Rose and Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte found themselves in jeopardy after the judges scores were combined with audience votes. Host Tom Bergeron quickly calmed the nerves of McCormick and Rose by telling them that they were safe.
When it came down to Austin and Lochte, the voting audience had cast their votes in favor of the controversy-prone Lochte. That meant that the former Disney star was going home.
View the original at Parade or follow us on Twitter, Facebook or Google+