From embracing his inner Clark Kent to facing his fear of darkness, Stephen Nedoroscik has put on one memorable performance after another on Dancing With The Stars. After earning his first 10 on the show during the Halloween-themed episode, the two-time Paris Olympics medalist once again showed that he doesn’t like to rest on his laurels and achieved his highest score on the show on the 500th episode.

For Nedoroscik, life in 2024 has been almost like the Eurythmics’ iconic song, Sweet Dreams. After winning the Olympic bronze with Team USA in Paris to break a 16-year-old medal drought, the Pen State alum has continued to enthrall audiences with his performances on DWTS. A few weeks ago, he even pulled off a pommel horse routine on the dance floor much to the delight of his gymnastics fans. Following his recent outing on the show with dance partner Rylee Arnold, the two shared their delight at progressing to the semifinals of the reality competition.

In Arnold’s Instagram story on Sunday, she and the pommel horse specialist can be heard sharing their thrill of reaching the semi-final round of the popular dancing show. “You guys, we made it to the semifinals. We’re so happy.” Rylee exclaimed before asking Nedoroscik for his thoughts.

“I mean, I’m just living the dreams. It’s amazing, I can’t believe I made it to the semifinals, and fingers crossed, to the finals,” the 25-year-old said. Last week’s episode of DWTS saw Nedoroscik and Arnold perform a Viennese waltz, paying tribute to Charli D’Amelio and Mark Ballas’ performance in Season 31 to “Glimpse of Us” by Joji. The pair ended up with their highest score of the season, earning a score of 29 out of 30.

This was followed by an impromptu dance, where they performed the jive and got 25 out of 30 points. This was enough to book them a place in the semi-finals. Nedoroscik has been taking on the challenge of dancing head-on and even performed in the dark for the Halloween episode, without his glasses.

Speaking on the difficult routine, he said, “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.” But it didn’t hold him back as he earned his first 10 of the season.

The gymnast has continued to improve his routines and even admitted that he was driven by the fear of failure on the show. After performing Charleston to “A Star Is Born” from “Hercules,” he and Arnold earned a score of 24 out of 30, while they survived elimination the gymnast wasn’t happy with his performance.

He revealed, “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.” Clearly, his efforts have shone through as he now finds himself closer to more glory. Notably, this season of DWTS may not be the only time we see the gymnast taking to the dance floor.

Dancing With the Stars: Live! tour was announced on October 7 and Nedoroscik has hinted at possibly being part of it. “I think would be like incredibly fun like how cool would it be to just go around the country and do like dance routines that you learn throughout the entire fall,” he told Joe Vulpis. So what does it mean for his gymnastics future?

When the Team USA star was recently asked if he was getting enough training done between his DWTS stint, he confessed that it isn’t something he’s been able to manage with his current hectic schedule.

“Actually, I’m not, and this is the longest gymnastics break I’ve ever taken in my life. I’m a little scared about my comeback into the sport,” Stephen Nedoroscik mumbled, and his fans might have a few raised eyebrows by now. But thankfully, you can take the 25-year-old away from the pommel horse, but you can’t take gymnastics away from him in any way.

Stephen Nedoroscik will always have gymnastics on his mind

When his national teammates hit the road right after the Paris Games for the second edition of the Gold Over America Tour, Stephen Nedoroscik stunned the world with his decision to instead give in to his dancing itch. However, it hasn’t been a lonesome journey at all; instead, Stephen’s colleagues have dropped by from time to time to make sure he didn’t forget where his roots truly lie.

The Olympic medalist also took the opportunity to pay tribute to the sport and his teammates in one of the episodes of DWTS, where he and Arnold displayed their Argentine Tango skills to the tunes of Seven Nation Army by The White Stripes. 

Moreover, the past two months have also given Stephen Nedoroscik a chance to show his dancing partner what it means to be an elite gymnast. Sharing insights into the sport with Rylee whenever he can, the Olympian confessed that he’s doing his best to give her BTS knowledge about the sport. ‘It was fun because it was like my introduction to her of my world,” grinned the former Nittany Lion star.

Do you think their shared interest in each other’s profession will see Stephen and Rylee pull out something truly enigmatic this Tuesday? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!