Dancing with the Stars has officially crowned its season 24 champion!
Audiences tuned in on Tuesday evening to watch the three remaining contestants — David Ross, Normani Kordei and Rashad Jennings — compete for the coveted Mirrorball Trophy on the second night of a nail-biting two-part finale, and it was Jennings who took home the winning title.
After competing a previous number from earlier in the season, the baseball alum, Fifth Harmony singer and NFL free agent each performed a 24-hour fusion as their last judged dance of the competition.
Ross and Lindsay Arnold kicked off the final round of dances with their foxtrot salsa fusion, and were awarded a 36/40 by judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Len Goodman, Julianne Hough and Bruno Tonioli.
Kordei and Val Chmerkovskiy competed second, and were given a perfect 40/40 for their Argentine tango foxtrot fusion. “You’ve made such a challenging and intense journey look like you were born to do it,” Inaba complimented Kordei.
Lastly, Jennings and Emma Slater performed their cha cha tango fusion and were just shy of earning a perfect score; judges awarded them a 39/40 for their last dance.
In the suspenseful final moments of the show, it was revealed that Kordei came in third place in the competition, leaving Ross and Jennings as the two remaining contestants vying for the winning title.
But after the judges’ scores were tallied with audiences’ votes from across the United States, it was a surprised Jennings who won the competition.
After being presented with his glittery Mirrorball Trophy, Tom Bergeron said to the new winner, “So you never won anything?”
“Yeah, that turned around right now!” Jennings said with a laugh.
Although his time on DWTS has come to an end, Jennings will continue his dancing journey on the upcoming Dancing with the Stars: Live! — Hot Summer Nights tour.