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United States Daniella Karagach is an Emmy-nominated professional Latin and ballroom dancer and choreographer, known for her achievements on "Dancing with the Stars" and competitive dancesport.
Daniella Karagach joined the reality competition series "Dancing with the Stars" as a professional dancer for season 28, and went on to win season 30 with Iman Shumpert.
Daniella Brittany Karagach Pashkova was born on December 26, 1992, in Brooklyn, New York. Her parents, immigrants from Moldova, divorced when she was one. Raised primarily by her mother in Forest Hills and Bath Beach, she later moved to South Beach, Staten Island. Karagach began ballet at age three and Latin dance by age seven. Diagnosed with ADHD at six, her mother enrolled her in ballroom dance classes instead of medication, which helped her focus academically. She graduated from Franklin Delano Roosevelt High School and pursued childhood education at the College of Staten Island.
Karagach began her dancesport career at age eleven with Leonid Juashkovsky, becoming three-time USA Dance Junior I and II Latin Champions. They represented the U.S. at IDSF World Championships in Latvia, Russia, and Barcelona, and appeared on “America’s Ballroom Challenge.” In January 2009, she partnered with Pavel “Pasha” Pashkov. Together, they represented the U.S. at the 2009 World Games in Taiwan and various international competitions. Karagach and Pashkov are seven-time U.S. 10-Dance and Latin Champions, won the Rising Star Professional Championship at the 2017 Blackpool Dance Festival, and the 2018 U.S. Latin American Showdance Championship. They also competed on “World of Dance” (2018) and choreographed for “So You Think You Can Dance” (2022).
Karagach joined “Dancing with the Stars” in September 2019. After appearing in season 28 without a celebrity partner, she placed third with rapper Nelly in season 29 (2020). In season 30 (2021), she won with basketball player Iman Shumpert, marking the first time an NBA player won the competition. Their contemporary dance to “I Got 5 on It (Tethered Mix)” received critical acclaim. For her choreography, Karagach earned her first Primetime Emmy Award nomination. She was paired with actor Joseph Baena in season 31 (2022), finishing 11th, and with singer-songwriter Jason Mraz in season 32 (2023), where they were runners-up. In season 33 (2024), she partnered with basketball player Dwight Howard, placing 6th, and in season 34, she partnered with Dylan Efron.
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