Kristina Rihanoff (russian: Кристина Пшеничных,: Kristina Pshenichnykh; born 22 September 1977) is a world finalist professional
ballroom dancer
Ballroom dance is a set of partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world, mostly because of its performance and entertainment aspects. Ballroom dancing is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and television.
...
, instructor, choreographer and author.
She has a degree in Tourism and Hospitality; after finishing public school she studied with St Petersburg Branch of Modern Humanitarian Academy which has several colleges around Russia including Vladivostok.
Early life
The daughter of two engineers, Rihanoff was born and grew up in
Vladivostok
Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Zolotoy Rog, Golden Horn Bay on the Sea ...
, Russia, and started taking dance lessons from aged 5. Her parents divorced when she was aged 12, during the time when the breakup of the Soviet Union was occurring. Living with her mother, aged 15 she became a part-time dance instructor to help the household budget, earning in a day what her professionally educated mother could earn in a month.
Dance career
Aged 21, she was asked to become an instructor to Russian dancers based in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. She also undertook displays and instructed on dance classes in the evenings. She developed her career over the next few years through a combination of teaching and performing, in the United States as well as choreographing shows in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
,
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
and
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
.
[
Continuing her professional dance career, she gained 1st place in the South African International ]Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
Championship (2005–2006), 2nd in the US National American Rhythm Finals (2003–2005), 2nd in the Open to the World, Mambo
Mambo most often refers to:
* Mambo (music), a Cuban musical form
*Mambo (dance), a dance corresponding to mambo music
Mambo may also refer to:
Music
* Mambo section, a section in arrangements of some types of Afro-Caribbean music, particul ...
Championship (2003–2004), and was a semi-finalist at the Open to the World, Blackpool Dance Festival
The 8-day Blackpool Dance Festival is the world's first and most famous annual ballroom dance competition of international significance, held in the Empress Ballroom at the Winter Gardens, Blackpool, England since 1920. It is also the largest bal ...
in 2007.
After being partnered with American professional Brian Fortuna
Brian Fortuna (born September 20, 1982) is an American professional ballroom dancer, choreographer and instructor.
Biography
Brian Fortuna is currently starring in Theatre Production's Limited ''Over the Rainbow'' as Danny Cassidy. He rec ...
, she has performed in the UK with Robin Windsor
Robin Windsor (born 15 September 1979) is a British professional Latin and Ballroom dancer, best known for his appearances in the BBC television series '' Strictly Come Dancing''.
Personal life
Windsor was born in Ipswich, Suffolk, and grew u ...
since 2011.
''Strictly Come Dancing''
Highest and lowest scoring performances per dance
Rihanoff competed as a professional dancer in the sixth series of ''Strictly Come Dancing
''Strictly Come Dancing'' (informally known as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly ballroom and Latin dance. Each couple is scored by a panel of usually 4 ...
'' in 2008. She was partnered up with political broadcaster and author John Sergeant. On 19 November 2008, Sergeant announced that he would be withdrawing from the series, leaving them in seventh place.
Rihanoff returned in 2009 to compete for the show's seventh series, in which she was partnered with professional boxer Joe Calzaghe
Joseph William Calzaghe ( ; born 23 March 1972) is a Welsh former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2008. He held world championships in two weight classes, including the unified WBA (Undisputed), WBC, IBF, WBO, ''Ring'' magazine ...
. The couple were eliminated on week five of the competition, landing in eleventh place. Rihanoff and Calzaghe subsequently began a relationship, which lasted until 2013.
Rihanoff returned to compete for the show's eighth series in 2010, in which she was partnered with musician and DJ Goldie
Clifford Joseph Price MBE (born 19 September 1965), better known as Goldie, is a British music producer and DJ.
Initially gaining exposure for his work as a graffiti artist, Goldie became well known for his pioneering role as a musician in th ...
. The couple were eliminated on week two from the competition, landing in fourteenth place. Later in the year, she took part in and won the show's Christmas Special, partnering actor John Barrowman
John Scot Barrowman (born 11 March 1967) is a Scottish-American actor, author, presenter, singer and comic book writer. He is known for his role as Captain Jack Harkness in '' Doctor Who'' and ''Torchwood'', and as Malcolm Merlyn in the Arrow ...
. On 15 June 2011, Rihanoff was announced as one of the professional dancers for the show's ninth series. She was partnered with Australian actor and singer Jason Donovan
Jason Sean Donovan (born 1 June 1968) is an Australian actor and singer. He initially achieved fame in the Australian soap ''Neighbours'', playing Scott Robinson, before beginning a career in music in 1988. In the UK he has sold over 3 mi ...
. The couple reached the final of the competition, and finished in third place.
Rihanoff returned to compete in the show's tenth series, partnering actor Colin Salmon
Colin Salmon (born ) is a British actor. He is known for playing Charles Robinson in three James Bond films and James "One" Shade in the ''Resident Evil'' film series. He has had roles on many television series such as ''Doctor Who'', ''Merli ...
. The couple were eliminated on the fifth week of the competition, landing in eleventh place. In 2013 (series 11
Series may refer to:
People with the name
* Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series
* George Series (1920–1995), English physicist
Arts, entertainment, and media
Music
* Series, the ordered sets used in ...
), she was partnered with former England rugby player Ben Cohen. The couple were eliminated in the ninth week of the competition, finishing in eighth place.
In 2014, Rihanoff returned to compete in the show's twelfth series. She was partnered with Blue
Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when obs ...
singer Simon Webbe
Simon Solomon Webbe (born 30 March 1979) is a British singer. He is best known as a member of the boy band Blue, forming in 2000 before splitting in 2005 and reforming in 2009, selling over 15 million records. Webbe released three solo studio a ...
. The couple reached the final of the competition, and finished as one of the runners-up. In 2015, she competed in the show's thirteenth series, partnering with Irish singer Daniel O'Donnell
Daniel Francis Noel O'Donnell, MBE (born 12 December 1961) is an Irish singer, television presenter and philanthropist. After rising to public attention in 1983, he has since become a household name in Ireland and Britain; he has also had cons ...
. They became the third couple to be eliminated from the competition, leaving in thirteenth place.
Performances and results
;With celebrity partner John Sergeant
;With celebrity partner Joe Calzaghe
;With celebrity partner Goldie
;With celebrity partner Jason Donovan
1 Jennifer Grey
Jennifer Grey (born March 26, 1960) is an American actress. She made her acting debut with the film ''Reckless'' (1984), and had her breakthrough with the teen comedy film '' Ferris Bueller's Day Off'' (1986). She subsequently earned worldwide ...
temporarily replaced Goodman as a judge for week 6.
;With celebrity partner Colin Salmon
;With celebrity partner Ben Cohen
;With celebrity partner Simon Webbe
1 Donny Osmond
Donald Clark "Donny" Osmond (born December 9, 1957) is an American singer, dancer, actor, television host, and former teen idol. He first gained fame performing with four of his elder brothers as the Osmonds, earning several top ten hits and gol ...
appeared as a guest judge for week 3.
;With celebrity partner Daniel O'Donnell
Live tours and stage productions
Rihanoff has been taken part in the ''Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour'' from 2009 to 2015. In 2009 she performed with fellow professional dancer, Matthew Cutler
Matthew David Cutler (born 30 October 1973) is an English dancer and former World Amateur Latin-American champion. He was a professional dancer on the BBC dancing show '' Strictly Come Dancing''.
Early life
Cutler was born in Chelmsford, Essex ...
and filled in for Lilia Kopylova
Lilia Andreyevna Kopylova (russian: link=no, Лилия Андреевна Копылова; born 18 June 1978) is a Russian professional dancer.
With her husband Darren Bennett, she has been competing as an amateur since July 1997 and as a p ...
at one show, partnering Julian Clary
Julian Peter McDonald Clary (born 25 May 1959) is an English actor, comedian, novelist and presenter. He began appearing on television in the mid-1980s. Since then he has also acted in films, television and stage productions, numerous pantomim ...
.On the Strictly 2010 tour, Rihanoff was partnered with Series 4 Champion Mark Ramprakash
Mark Ravin Ramprakash (born 5 September 1969) is an English former cricketer. A right-handed batsman, he initially made his name playing for Middlesex, and was selected for England aged 21. A gifted, and one of the heaviest-scoring, English b ...
. They danced the Salsa
Salsa most often refers to:
* Salsa (Mexican cuisine), a variety of sauces used as condiments
* Salsa music, a popular style of Latin American music
* Salsa (dance), a Latin dance associated with Salsa music
Salsa or SALSA may also refer to:
A ...
and the Argentine Tango
Argentine tango is a musical genre and accompanying social dance originating at the end of the 19th century in the suburbs of Buenos Aires. It typically has a or rhythmic time signature, and two or three parts repeating in patterns such as AB ...
. On the Strictly 2011 tour, Rihanoff was partnered with actor Jimi Mistry
Jimi Mistry (born 1 January 1973) is a retired British actor. He is known for appearing in numerous films such as '' East Is East'' (1999), '' The Guru'' (2002), ''Ella Enchanted'' (2004), '' The Truth About Love'' (2005), '' Blood Diamond'' (2 ...
, they danced the Foxtrot
The foxtrot is a smooth, progressive dance characterized by long, continuous flowing movements across the dance floor. It is danced to big band (usually vocal) music. The dance is similar in its look to waltz, although the rhythm is in a tim ...
and Paso Doble
Pasodoble (Spanish language, Spanish: ''double step'') is a fast-paced Spanish military march used by infantry troops. Its speed allowed troops to give 120 steps per minute (double the average of a regular unit, hence its name). This military ...
. In 2012, 2014 and 2015 Rihanoff reunited with her dance partners from the television series, Jason Donovan, Ben Cohen and Simon Webbe, respectively. Rhianoff and Webbe went on to win the overall tour in 2015.
In 2012 Rihanoff and Robin Windsor
Robin Windsor (born 15 September 1979) is a British professional Latin and Ballroom dancer, best known for his appearances in the BBC television series '' Strictly Come Dancing''.
Personal life
Windsor was born in Ipswich, Suffolk, and grew u ...
joined fellow professional Artem Chigvintsev
Artem Vladimirovich Chigvintsev (russian: Артём Влади́мирович Чи́гвинцев; born 12 June 1982) is a Russian-American professional dancer, specializing in Latin dancing.
Chigvintsev was a cast member of '' Burn the F ...
and former Strictly contestant Kara Tointon
Kara Louise Tointon (born 5 August 1983) is an English actress, known for portraying the role of Dawn Swann in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. In 2010, she won the BBC competition series ''Strictly Come Dancing'', and in 2015, she appeared as ...
for the first 'Dance to the Music Tour'.
Other projects
In Summer 2015, Rihanoff and Windsor took part in the Touring Theatre Production of ''Puttin' On The Ritz'', as well as Dance Weekends around the county.
Rihanoff choreographs a number of professional and commercial dance works. These have included both ''Burn the Floor
Burn the Floor is a live dance show which has performed around the world, including on Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in New York City and the West End of London, West End in London. Since 1997, Burn the Floor has performed in over 130 countries w ...
'' and '' Dancing on Wheels'', which she choreographed with Fortuna. She has also choreographed dance routines inside the television commercials, including those for St Tropez
, INSEE = 83119
, postal code = 83990
, image coat of arms = Blason ville fr Saint-Tropez-A (Var).svg
, image flag=Flag of Saint-Tropez.svg
Saint-Tropez (; oc, Sant Tropetz, ; ) is a commune in the Var department and the region of Provence-Alp ...
suntan lotion, Panache bras and MeMeMe Cosmetics.[
Rihanoff has written a book entitled ''The Art of Dancesport Makeup'' for newcomers to ]Ballroom dance
Ballroom dance is a set of partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world, mostly because of its performance and entertainment aspects. Ballroom dancing is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and television. ...
competition, a subject that she studied extensively in Russia. Rihanoff participated in the 2008 ''Weakest Link
''Weakest Link'' (also known as ''The Weakest Link'') is a television game show which first appeared in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 14 August 2000 and originally ended on 31 March 2012 when its host Anne Robinson completed her contract. ...
''s ''Strictly Come Dancing'' special.
Rihanoff's weekly column in Best Magazine during each Strictly season has proved hugely popular. Rihanoff regularly appears in the mainstream media including Hello Magazine, Heat Magazine, OK, Best Magazine, Let's Talk etc.
Rihanoff has appeared in the Celebrity Version of Mastermind, with her specialist subject which was Patrick Swayze.
Rihanoff has also appeared on The Hairy Bikers Programme, cooking the Traditional Russian Dish Borscht.
Choreographing a couple of UK TV Adverts Including the BT Commercial and also Aviva Insurance.
In 2017, Rihanoff directed and choreographed 39-day tour Dance To The Music. The tour featured Rihanoff and Robin Windsor
Robin Windsor (born 15 September 1979) is a British professional Latin and Ballroom dancer, best known for his appearances in the BBC television series '' Strictly Come Dancing''.
Personal life
Windsor was born in Ipswich, Suffolk, and grew u ...
, Oksana and Jonathan Platero, and six more professional world-class dancers. In September 2017 Rihanoff launched her fashion line in collaboration with Pia Michi.
Rihanoff appeared as a guest in Netflix's ''Baby Ballroom'' in both seasons.
Celebrity Big Brother
On 5 January 2016, Rihanoff became a housemate in the 17th series of ''Celebrity Big Brother
''Big Brother VIP'', is an adaptation of the '' Big Brother'' reality television series. It is the celebrity version of its parent franchise ''Big Brother'', the celebrity version airs in several countries, however, the housemates or houseguest ...
''. On Day 3 she announced, in the house, she and boyfriend Ben Cohen were expecting a child, and that was roughly three months into her pregnancy. The pair were dance partners on the 2013 series of Strictly Come Dancing and at the time Cohen was still married to his former wife Abby. On 19 January 2016, Rihanoff became the third housemate to be evicted from the house, having received the fewest votes to save, spending a total of fifteen days in the house.
Personal life
Rihanoff is a patron of children's charity called The Dot Com Foundation helping children deal with risky situations, whether it be violence within the home, to confidence building.
Following her well-publicised relationship with Joe Calzaghe
Joseph William Calzaghe ( ; born 23 March 1972) is a Welsh former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2008. He held world championships in two weight classes, including the unified WBA (Undisputed), WBC, IBF, WBO, ''Ring'' magazine ...
, it was revealed in 2015 that another of her former partners, Ben Cohen, had left his wife Abby for Rihanoff, and in 2016 the couple had a daughter, Milena. In November 2022, Cohen and Rihanoff got engaged in the Maldives
Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...
.
In 2017, it was reported that Rihanoff and Cohen had adopted a vegan
Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal product—particularly in diet—and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows the diet or philosophy is known as a vegan. Di ...
diet to overcome health issues."Kristina Rihanoff Reveals Vegan Diet Saved Ben Cohen's Life After He Nearly Died From Glandular Fever"
Contactmusic.com. Retrieved 2021-02-26.
References
External links
*
(2009 archived copy)
Dancesport Info listing for Kristina Rihanoff (Pchenitchnykh)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rihanoff, Kristina
1977 births
Living people
21st-century American dancers
21st-century Russian dancers
American ballroom dancers
People from Vladivostok
Russian ballroom dancers
Russian emigrants to the United States
Russian expatriates in England
Russian female dancers