Hines Ward says his Dancing with the Stars twelfth-season victory was especially sweet because he overcame one of his greatest fears in the process.

ADVERTISEMENT

"It felt amazing. For me, when I signed up for Dancing with the Stars, I never danced in my whole life. I was so scared. I was so scared, I didn't even go to my prom. I had a big fear of dancing and it was exciting," the NFL football star said during a Wednesday morning appearance on Good Morning America.

Ward and his professional partner Kym Johnson were declared the champions of Dancing with the Stars during Tuesday night's live finale results show on ABC, and while Ward will no longer have the opportunity to dance onstage, he said he plans to incorporate his newfound skills on the football field.

"I'm going to use some of my dance moves. If I happen to get a touchdown, you'll see a little tribute to Kym -- a little cha cha in the end zone," Ward joked.

Johnson, who joined Ward and the couples who came in second and third place in the GMA interview, also talked about the training accident in which she was rushed to the hospital after she landed on her neck while they were rehearsing for last week's semifinals performance show. 

"I had a big scare myself. But yeah, I felt fine. I feel fine now. Obviously, straight after, it was pretty scary. But Hines got me through. There was a moment where I didn't know if I would be able to continue with the competition, and then we got to the semifinals and then we made the finals. But it's all Hines getting me through that," Johnson explained.

Ward expressed how upsetting Johnson's injury was for him because he seemingly placed most of the blame on himself.

"For me, I'm involved in that type of environment each and every Sunday. So looking down at her -- and that could easily have went the other way -- I don't know how I could have lived with myself. But there were tears of joy three days after that when we went out and we nailed our performance, and here we are dancing again," Ward said.

"It was just amazing. After being with each other for so long -- 10-13 weeks, five hours a day, six to seven hours a day -- we grew a relationship. It's like family, and then to have to see your family get carted off into the ambulance, it's just not a great feeling. I'm just happy that she's dancing again."

Despite Dancing with the Stars' brutal training schedule, Ward insisted he had actually anticipated his sessions with Johnson.

"I woke up in the morning and I looked forward to going to practice, because she made it fun for me just to go out there, not only to learn the dance routine, but to learn each other," he said.

Ward said the mirror ball trophy he won is going to have a special place in his house.

"I would definitely put it right beside my Superbowl MVP trophy. I think the two go hand in hand," Ward said.

In addition, Johnson said she wasn't entirely sure if she will come back for Dancing with the Stars' next season in an attempt to defend her title.

"Um, I can't even wrap my head around next season now. Just finishing this and getting the mirror ball is amazing, but yeah, maybe. We never find out until just before, so we'll see," Johnson added.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

FOLLOW REALITY TV WORLD ON GOOGLE NEWS