Laurie Hernandez and her partner Val Chmerkovskiy brought the whole ballroom to tears with their foxtrot honoring the gymnast’s grandmother.
Before the performance, it was revealed that Hernandez’s grandmother had passed away.
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“My grandma suffers from Alzheimer’s so her memory is not that great. I kind of feel bad, I’ve been away from home, so I haven’t been able to see her as much as I used to,” she shared with the camera through tears. “She’s not doing very well, but I think I’m going to see her very soon.”
A day after the interview, Brunilda Hernandez passed away.
The partners delivered a stunning performance, which earned them a perfect score.
“First of all, I’m so sorry for your loss,” judge Carrie Ann Inaba said with tears in her eyes. “Using all that emotion and channeling it for something beautiful for all of us to watch. You represent the American dream, and also the Dancing with the Stars dream.”
Julianne Hough couldn’t hide the emotion in her voice when she told the young athlete, “I’m choosing to smile right now, with tears of joy and happiness, because I know that that’s exactly what your grandmother is doing right now. We should be celebrating her life and how incredible you are. And tonight, not only has your performance exceeded everything you do technically, but this entire journey for you, you have grown into the most beautiful young woman, and you should be very, very proud of yourself.”
Host Tom Bergeron was not immune to the overwhelming emotion in the room.
“That was the most amazing display of courage I’ve seen in 23 seasons,” he told her with tears in his eyes. “And I hope you could feel that 700 people in this room and countless more were sending you energy all through that dance.”
Watch the emotional dance below:
This story first appeared at Womanista.
