Pasha Kovalev
Russian dancer / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Pavel "Pasha" Kovalev (Russian: Па́вел "Па́ша" Ковалёв; born 19 January 1980) is a Russian professional Latin and ballroom dancer.
Pasha Kovalev | |
---|---|
Па́ша Ковалёв | |
Born | (1980-01-19) 19 January 1980 (age 44) |
Occupation(s) | Latin and Ballroom dancer |
Years active | 2001–present |
Television | |
Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) |
Spouse | |
Children | 2 |
Kovalev started dancing at the age of eight, and in 2001, moved to the United States with his professional dance partner Anya Garnis.[1] In 2007, the couple competed on the third season of the American version of So You Think You Can Dance,[2] and they have since participated in the eight subsequent seasons as either choreographers or All-Star partners to the contestants.
In 2011, Kovalev moved to the United Kingdom to take part in the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing as a professional dancer.[3] After finishing runner-up on both the ninth and tenth series with celebrity partners Chelsee Healey and Kimberley Walsh,[4][5] he went on to win series twelve with his partner Caroline Flack.[6] Despite facing backlash over her past dance experience and landing in the bottom two three times, he and his celebrity partner, Ashley Roberts, later became runners-up on the sixteenth series of the show. They currently hold the record of the highest average for any celebrity on the show – with an average of 36.9 – and another record for scoring the most perfect scores – with a total of five. Kovalev announced that 2018 was his final series on the show as he had decided to "find a new challenge" after "eight incredible years".[7]