How Val Chmerkovskiy Congratulated Fellow Dancer Artem Chigvintsev on His 1st Mirrorball Win

Val Chmerkovskiy congratulated his "Dancing With The Stars" colleague Artem Chigvinstev on winning his first Mirrorball Trophy.

"Dancing with the Stars" star Val Chmerkovskiy congratulated his fellow dancer Artem Chigvinstev on winning his first Mirrorball Trophy with his partner, Kaitlyn Bristowe.

Val shared a post on Instagram -- a gallery of photos and a video of the moment the duo learned they had won, and accompanied it with a lengthy text praising Artem and his talent.

CONGRATULATIONS

Val's post shares a video clip of his own wife, Jenna Johnson, who placed second with her celebrity partner Nev Schulman, talking to Artem.

Both are wearing face masks as Jenna shakes Artem's hand over and over, and congratulates him on his win. In the background, a tearful Kaitlyn Bristowe is talking to a member of the crew.

It was felt that judge Carrie Ann Inaba, who once dated the Russian dancer was particularly hard on the duo

Two more snaps in the gallery show Artem and Jenna backstage, sharing the moment, and talking about the finale. Val expressed his divided emotions, writing:

"As hard as it was seeing Jenna lose hers, it was equally consoling to see you win yours."

Val, who has won "Dancing With The Stars" twice -- wife Jenna has won once -- was effusive in his praise for Artem whom he credits with helping him make it through the moments of high pressure when he was in the show's finals.

Val considers this win a vindication of Artem's talent and professionalism, especially since his tenure on "DWTS" had been brought into question in 2019.

Val expressed his support and admiration for Artem and his happiness that he had finally achieved the recognition he so richly deserves. He wrote:

"Brother I hope you felt how much the world loves you how much our little touring and dancing collective loves you."

Kaitlyn and Artem's victory was particularly sweet since at one stage it was felt that judge Carrie Ann Inaba, who once dated the Russian dancer was particularly hard on the duo.

Artem and Kaitlyn ended up scoring perfect 10s for their last two performances and won a standing ovation from Inaba, who told them that they had finally lived up to their potential.