'Dancing with the Stars' crowns Kellie Pickler and Derek Hough sixteenth-season champions

Dancing with the Stars has named a former American Idol finalist its new mirrorball trophy champion.


After 13 weeks of training and 17 rounds of competition, country singer Kellie Pickler and her professional partner Derek Hough were crowned Dancing with the Stars' sixteenth-season ballroom winners during Tuesday night's live finale results show on ABC.

"Oh my God! No not at all," Kellie said when Dancing with the Stars host Tom Bergeron asked her if she had ever envisioned winning the competition.

"This is amazing. Oh my God!"

Kellie and Derek -- who is now a four-time Dancing with the Stars champion -- hugged each other and their fellow contestants onstage amidst all the hype and chaos of the couple's victory. Both Kellie and Derek then celebrated on the shoulders of their castmates.


Kellie and Derek were revealed as Dancing with the Stars champions based on the combination of their share of the judges' scoring points from Monday and Tuesday night's four finale performance rounds and their share of the home viewer votes that were cast immediately after Monday's three initial rounds.

Disney Channel star Zendaya Coleman and partner Val Chmerkovskiy finished in second place.

"I am very proud [of myself] and I'm very happy. And I get to leave here with an amazing experience, so I'm happy," Zendaya noted after the results were announced.

NFL football player Jacoby Jones and partner Karina Smirnoff claimed third place.

"Out of all my trainers that I've had, I've never had a woman pushing me like she did. So when I go back, all this gracefulness, footwork, everything -- I'll be catching a ball [while posing]," Jacoby said.


Fourth place went to 2012 Olympic gold medal winning gymnast Alexandra "Aly" Raisman and partner Mark Ballas.

"This has been the best experience of my life. Thank you Dancing with the Stars. It's been so amazing! And good luck to you three, I love you guys so much," Aly said at the beginning of Tuesday night's broadcast after Tom revealed the night's first round of results. "I am so happy that I did this show. My whole life, all I've ever known is gymnastics, so to try something new has just been amazing and has just been one of the best experiences of my life."

"Aly, I'm so proud of you. You've come such a long way. You've just been a star from start to finish -- never complained -- the best student I've ever had and I love you," added Mark in a video montage.

Kellie and Derek received a near-perfect total score of 64 out of 65 possible points for their three Monday night dances from Dancing with the Stars judges Len Goodman, Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli.

During Monday night's broadcast, the Top 4 finalists and their respective partners danced in three rounds of competition -- the "Judges' Pick" round, a "Cha Cha Relay" and finally the "Supersized Freestyle" in which the couples could take charge creatively and enhance the routine by utilizing extra performers and/or special production features.


Kellie and Derek finished in second place on Monday night's judging leaderboard. Zendaya and Val topped the leaderboard in first place after receiving a perfect 65 total points. Aly and Mark followed closely behind them with an overall score of 61 points. Jacoby and Karina landed in fourth place on Monday night's leaderboard with 56 total points.

Following Aly and Mark's ouster, Tuesday night's finale broadcast featured the Top 3 couples each performing one last quickly-rehearsed "instant dance" routine in the hopes of bettering their original judges' scores. The couples were not able to learn the music for their particular dance style until one hour prior to taking the dance floor.
         
Kellie and Derek, Zendaya and Val, and Jacoby and Karina all earned 30 out of 30 possible points from the Dancing with the Stars judges for their "instant dance." Jacoby and Karina danced the salsa, while Kellie and Derek and Zendaya and Val both performed a jive routine.

Following the four rounds of competition over the course of two nights, Zendaya and Val finished in first place overall on the judges' leaderboard with 95 out of 95 possible points.
 
Kellie and Derek finished in second place on the combined two-night judging leaderboard with 94 total points. Jacoby and Karina earned a two-night overall score of 86 points.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski