Olympic figure skater Mirai Nagasu ready for her 'Dancing' moment

ByGeorge Pennacchio and ABC7.com staff KABC logo
Wednesday, April 25, 2018
Mirai Nagasu is ready for her 'DWTS' moment
Figure skater Mirai Nagasu made history at the 2018 Olympics, and now she's ready to compete in the latest season of "Dancing with the Stars."

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Olympic figure skater Mirai Nagasu had a historic performance at the Winter Games in February and now we'll see if she can take home the mirrorball trophy in the latest season of "Dancing with the Stars."

The Southern California native had a historic performance at the Olympics in Pyeongchang, becoming the first American woman to land a triple axel at the Games and helping Team USA take home a bronze medal in a team event.

Now Nagasu is headed to the dance floor with her professional dance partner Alan Bersten, where she'll compete against other athletes, including fellow Olympian Adam Rippon, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Tonya Harding and more in "Dancing with the Stars: Athletes."

"I'm ready for this competition," Nagasu said. "My feet hurt because I'm not used to not being in skates, but we're doing it for the mirrorball trophy."

This season of DWTS is only four weeks long, meaning the athletes will be aiming for a perfect score right from the start.

"Since it's so competitive, we're trying to hit the ground running," Bersten said. "We're not even doing a Week 1 dance, we're doing a Week 7 dance."

While Nagasu says she's living in the moment and admits she's a little uncomfortable on the dance floor, she is ready to be a dance champion.

"I fall all the time, but I get back up and keep going," Nagasu said.

As far as what dance she'll be attempting first, Nagasu is getting ready to salsa.

"Dancing with the Stars: Athletes" premieres Monday, April 30 on ABC.