Dancing with the Stars has hit week seven, and Stephen Nedoroscik is showing no signs of slowing down. Stephen and his partner Rylee Arnold, during week seven, took up a style the duo hadn’t dabbled in before. They channeled Stephen’s fear of pitch-black darkness into a beautiful contemporary routine. The result? A first 10 for the two-time Paris Olympic medalist on the show.

This was a much-needed shot in the arm for him, considering last week’s performance. Hence, this week was a big challenge for him and his dance partner to deliver. The situation was made more difficult for Nedoroscik due to his performing without his glasses. Since the routines were based on their scariest Halloween nightmares, Nedoroscik stepped into the dark, literally.

“If I was in pitch black darkness, and I didn’t know where I was. Without my glasses, I have trouble seeing anything at all. I have no depth perception, and I also have a genetic disorder, so any lights that are in my face, it’s super painful, and I usually can’t really see well at all,” he admitted before stepping on the dance floor. When asked whether lack of glasses might be affecting his timing in the dances, Nedoroscik said, “With better vision, everything would be easier,” but said, “That didn’t hold me back at the Olympics and it’s not gonna hold me back now.”

Performing such a complicated without glasses was never going to be easy and while many fans will sympathize with Nedoroscik, DWTS legend Cheryl Burke had a slightly different take. A two-time Dancing with the Stars champion, Burke has been a part of 26 seasons! So she has seen many performers on the show battle through many issues and give it their all.

In an episode of the podcast S-x, Lies, and Spray Tans, last Thursday, she discussed Stephen Nedoroscik. Addressing Nedoroscik’s comments about vision problems, she said, “There was no excuses, right? Like regardless, you could still hear the music or you can’t, like you still have other senses, and let’s not go there when we’ve had contestants as far as Amy Purdy, as Danielle Umstead.” The two names Burke mentioned performed on DWTS and have interesting and complicated stories.

Amy Purdy was on season 18 of DWTS. Purdy, as Cheryl pointed out, did have some challenges while being on the show. After contracting Neisseria meningitidis at 19, Purdy had to go through a double amputation. Despite just 2% survival, she defied the odds and even went on to dance her heart out of DWTS. Meanwhile, the other name that Burke took, Danielle Umstead, also had a challenging period. And her story resonates with Stephen.

Danielle Umstead is a paralympic Alpine skier. She, too, had issues with her eyesight. Danielle has a rare genetic eye condition called retinitis pigmentosa. A condition that causes loss of vision and difficulty with peripheral vision. Despite such challenging odds, she was able to perform on season 27 of DWTS.

Burke, after taking these two names, went on to add, “So many other people who actually have, you know, ailments when it comes to certain things that they for sure can’t do. And then you’ve got somebody like Stephen, who’s an Olympian, obviously. And of course, yes, there are some issues with his eyesight and whatever, but that doesn’t, that wouldn’t mean that you’re off time to the music when you still have ears.” But if you think that’s all Cheryl has to say for Stephen, you’d stand being proven wrong.

Cheryl Burke doesn’t fail to highlight Stephen Nedoroscik’s fighting spirit, praising his refusal to make excuses. His declaration, “I’m a fighter, I’m an Olympian, and we’re gonna get through this,” captures his determination and resilience, showcasing his commitment to overcoming challenges on the dance floor. Emphasizing Nedoroscik’s need for technical refinement, Burke stated that the issue “Has never been about Steven’s musicality as it’s been more about his posture and his smoothness and his transitions as far as like from foot to foot, right? It’s that it’s the middle part of each step that kind of loses its fluidity because of not continuing the contact as far as his feet and making love to the floor with both his feet and creating the elasticity needed.” By focusing on the importance of maintaining contact with the floor, Burke not only critiques but also offers a roadmap for his improvement, underscoring her unwavering support as he strives for success in the competition.

Now, Nedoroscik, who caught attention during the Paris Games, due to his signature Clark Kent look, has two eye conditions. In a TikTok video in 2022, he revealed that he has strabismus, which he described as being cross-sighted before demonstrating how he can “switch his dominant eye on command with both eyes open.” 

He also tagged the TikTok video with #coloboma, which is a condition that occurs when a person is born without a portion of eye tissue in one or both eyes. This can cause pupil(s) to take on an irregular shape or appear permanently dilated, as is the case with Nedoroscik.

There appeared to be problems for the Olympian in the last couple of weeks when it came to timing. Nedoroscik is keen not to use his issues with vision as an excuse and wants to perform at the highest level in order to stay on the show.

There you have it, folk. Cheryl Burke will not settle for that reasoning. While Cheryl might not feel that the performance with timing issues is the best of the lot, Stephen Nedoroscik had a completely conflicting interview post-performance.

Stephen Nedoroscik driven by the fear of failure on DWTS

Stephen Nedoroscik and Rylee Arnold danced away to “I Ran (So Far Away)” by Hidden Citizens, giving it their all. And post-performance, Stephen was all smiles and optimistic. He even went on to say, “ I’m so proud of that performance. I think it’s the best that I ever did that dance, and it was just an amazing moment.” Well, this week’s score of 28/30 does reflect it was a great performance. This has been a huge improvement from their other weeks.

In week one, the duo ended their jive to “Don’t Stop Me Now” by Queen with a total score of just 21. And then they followed it with one of their best performances in week four, where the duo did the Argentine tango for dedication night. Rylee and Stephen danced to “Seven Nation Army” by The White Stripes and got a score of 22.

On October 22, the duo scored 24 points after performing Charleston to “A Star Is Born” from “Hercules,” but Nedoroscik wasn’t happy with how things went as he found himself in the bottom three, but survived elimination.

“As an elite athlete, being at the bottom of the leaderboard is terrifying. I don’t want to be in that position again, so I’m doing everything in my power to stay on the show,” Nedoroscik said before this week’s incredible performance that saw him and Arnold hit 28 points and advance.

After the performance, Stephen even went on to say, “I’d celebrate after like I would at a gymnastics competition because it felt like that to me.” Celebrate away, Stephen Nedoroscik; after all, he just got one step closer to the finals. The world can’t wait to see what the duo does next!