Born Name
Karina Smirnova
Nick Name
Karina
Sun Sign
Capricorn
Born Place
Kharkov, Ukrainian SSR, USSR (now Kharkiv, Ukraine)
Nationality
Education
Karina attended many schools such as Nerinx Hall High School in St. Louis, Missouri and then, Christopher Columbus High School in The Bronx, New York City. She finally graduated from Bronx High School of Science in NYC.
Subsequently, she double majored in information system programming and economics from Fordham University in New York City.
Occupation
Professional ballroom dancer
Family
She has a small family. In her family, she has her dad and mom.
Karina has no siblings. But, she has a pet dog of American Staffordshire terrier breed, named Randy.
Her family owns a liquor store in Staten Island in New York City.
Dance Style
Ballroom and ballet
Manager
Her work and career is managed by Dmitry Chaplin and Lindsay Rielly Petra Nemcova.
Build
Slim
Height
5 ft 4 in or 163 cm
Weight
55 kg or 121 pounds
Boyfriend / Spouse
Karina Smirnoff dated –
- Michael Yo – American actor Michael Yo dated Karina in the past.
- Andy Baldwin – US Naval Officer, Ironman triathlete, and physician Andy Baldwin dated Karina in the past.
- Slavik Kryklyvyy (2000-2005) – From 2000 to 2005, the two Ukrainian dancers were romantically linked to each other.
- (2006-2008) – Karina started dating American actor Mario Lopez in September 2006 after meeting him on the set of Dancing With The Stars (DWTS). She was partnered with him in the third season of the show. The duo kept dating until June 2008. They finished second in DWTS.
- (2008-2009) – Karina again dated another Ukrainian dancer Maksim for more than a year from June 2008 until September 2009. During this time, they also engaged each other on New Year’s Eve on December 31, 2008, in Las Vegas. They met for the first time during the reality dance competition show DWTS.
- Brad Penny (2009-2011) – American baseball player, Brad Penny and Karina Smirnoff met each other via a mutual friend Chuck Liddell, who is a UFC fighter. They started dating in October of 2009. After dating for a year, she got engaged to Brad on October 4, 2010. But, like the previous one, this relationship also saw an end in December 2011.
- (2012) – Karina reportedly dated racing car driver and reality TV personality Arie Luyendyk Jr. in 2012.
- (2014) – Canadian actor Pablo Schreiber and Karina were seen together frequently by paparazzi in early 2014. This romance was very short-lived.
- Jason Adelman (2014-2015) – Entrepreneur Jason Adelman and Karina started dating in 2014. They got engaged in January 2015. But, the engagement was called off by March 2015 and the relationship was off.
- Chad Johnson (2016-2017) – Reality TV personality Chad Johnson and Karina started dating in November 2016. The relationship was short-lived and the couple separated in February 2017.
Note – Karina became a mother of a boy, named, Theo Gabriel in March 2020. The father’s identity has been kept a secret.
Race / Ethnicity
White
Karina has Greek and Russian ancestry.
Hair Color
Black
Eye Color
Dark Brown
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Measurements
34-24-33 in or 86-61-84 cm
Dress Size
4 (US) or 36 (EU)
Shoe Size
5 (US) or 35.5 (EU)
Brand Endorsements
Bearpaw, Lady Foot Locker
Religion
Eastern Orthodox
Best Known For
Appearing on ABC’s dance show Dancing With The Stars (DWTS) since 2006. During her first time appearance on this show, she was able to finish second, when partnered with American actor Mario Lopez.
First Film
Smirnoff appeared in 2004 dramedy (comedy-drama) film Shall We Dance as a dance instructor and was Link’s Pouty’s (played by ) dance partner.
First TV Show
Before debuting on ABC’s DWTS in 2006, she had already appeared in the TV series Entertainment Tonight as herself.
Personal Trainer
Smirnoff is a regular player on DWTS. So, she is always dancing, which is a big cardio workout. She works out for 6 to 8 hours a day.
As she does a lot of dancing, during her off time, she makes her body to undergo different exercises. This helps her to keep motivated and stays away from boredom. Karina does some stretching in the form of Bikram yoga so that her muscles don’t get used to the usual dancing moves. Her other favorite exercises are hiking and .
She likes to keep hydrated herself with watermelon.
Karina also eats healthy food like steamed vegetables, chicken, fish, and salads.
In her breakfast, she just likes to have her favorite cereal, a fresh fruit, and nuts like almond.
Karina has also released her fitness DVD called .
Karina Smirnoff Favorite Things
- Food – Honey Bunches of Oats Greek Honey Crunch
Source – AXS.com
Karina Smirnoff Facts
- Since the age of five, she is active in dancing, gymnastics, aerobics, and skating.
- Karina can also play the piano. She took piano lessons as a kid.
- At 14 (in 1992), she relocated to the United States to get a better education. At that time, she had no plans of building her career in dancing.
- If she weren’t into dancing, she would probably be an attorney as she was planning to get admission into a law school. But, when she found a dance school (when she was studying at Fordham University) in The Brooklyn in New York, her mood and future plans changed.
- She has also posed completely n*de for Playboy magazine in their May 2011 issue and then one in a PETA’s advertising campaign.
- Karina won the DWTS dance competition show for the first time in its thirteenth season when she was partnered with army veteran and soap opera star J. R. Martinez. She is continuously appearing in this show since season 3.
- She always steps on the dance floor with her right foot. Did you notice that? She does so as she is superstitious.
- Besides preparing every dance item on DWTS, she also prepares all of her costumes and / or dresses.
- She likes to do the cooking.
- She has launched her own cosmetics line with Girlactik Beauty.
- She also wanted to have a pilot’s license. Due to that reason, she started taking flying lessons in 2011.
- She just cleans, whenever she is upset or sad.
- She has ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder).
- She is afraid of blood and needles.
- Karina likes to do SCUBA (Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus) diving.
- Visit her official website @ www.karinasmirnoff.com.
Facts of Karina Smirnoff
- full nameKarina Smirnoff
- Date of Birth January 02, 1978
- Age 46 years 11 months
- Horoscope Capricorn
- Lucky Number 10
- Lucky Stone Topaz
- Lucky Color Brown
- Best Match for Marriage Scorpio, Virgo, Taurus
- weight55 kg
- height5 ft 4 in