Former “Bachelor” Joey Graziadei has been named the “Dancing With the Stars” Ballroom Champion.

Reality star and pro partner Jenna Johnson defeated U.S. Olympian Ilona Maher and pro Alan Bersten, who finished second in the final minutes of ABC’s eight-week competition.

“I feel like Jenna totally deserves this and this is all for her,” Graziadei said of winning the Len Goodman Mirrorball trophy. “It means everything, this whole experience has been incredible, honestly. Ilona, ​​you have been amazing this season. I love you. To all the finalists, the judges, thank you for your patience. I did my best, I promise! “

Five semi-finalist couples entered the final. The other three were: Disney Channel alum Chandler Kinney and partner Brandon Armstrong, who finished in third place; Olympic gymnast (aka “Pommel Horse Guy”) Stephen Nedoroscik and Rylee Arnold, who placed fourth; and former NFL star Danny Amendola and Witney Carson, who finished fifth.

Read more: Olympic breakthrough star Ilona Maher wants to break stereotypes about female athletes

In a package reflecting on his time on the series, Graziadei said he felt like he was “completely in trouble” when he started training and wasn’t sure if he deserved to take part in the competition. The season 28 star of “The Bachelor,” who became the franchise’s first contestant to win “DWTS,” said he went from nervous in Week 1 to “confident and excited” by the final dance.

As is usually the case with “Dancing With the Stars” contestants, he said the competition was “the hardest thing” he has ever had to do.

“The mental side of this competition is without a doubt the most challenging thing I have done,” he said. “I have to learn routines and perform them properly for people within a week. The actual stress of that is crazy.”

Graziadei told Us Weekly that he “blacked out” when he won and only remembers Johnson “screaming really, really loudly” and hugging her. He also recalled last season’s winning pro, Val Chmerkovskiy, Johnson’s husband, coming on stage to present them with the Mirrorball.

“I remember this (trophy) was heavier than I thought it was going to be and that’s about it. That’s where we are now. And now we’re here,” he said.

Maher – who became a social media sensation with her behind-the-scenes posts from the Paris Olympics – accepted the loss with grace, hugging her partner as confetti fell in the ballroom and later thanking fans on Instagram for following.

“Thank you for everything, guys. Your votes are the reason we ended up in second place,” she and Bersten wrote in a joint statement. “It’s not a first of course, but honestly we won in many other ways. I’m so happy that we worked together and shared this amazing journey. We will remember this forever.”

For the finale, each pair performed a freestyle accompanied by additional dancers, as well as a “judges’ redemption” dance. Graziadei, a tennis coach before his “Bachelor” days, performed a tennis-themed dance set to “Canned Heat” and a redemptive cha-cha set to “Can’t Stop the Feeling,” capping his lackluster Week 1 restart.

Read more: Olympic breakthrough star Ilona Maher wants to break stereotypes about female athletes

Judge Derek Hough called the cha-cha “a punctuation mark that lets everyone know you’re a top candidate on this show.” The cha-cha earned the pair three perfect 10s from Hough and fellow judges Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli. Although their freestyle tennis didn’t do it for Inaba, who gave them a 9, it earned them two perfect 10s from Hough and Tonioli.

“We put in so much work … everyone did, but it meant that the world clearly understood this, and, you know, ended it with an exclamation point,” Graziadei said Wednesday during his victory lap on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” “

Graziadei also said he’s “going to take a break from reality TV for a while” after back-to-back stints on the two ABC series.

Read more: Fraudster Anna Delvey Needed Clearance from ICE Before Making Moves, Ankle Monitor to ‘DWTS’

Graziadei said “The Bachelor” and “DWTS” were both “great.” “Obviously I have a great fiancée and I have a Mirrorball now, so it’s been a great year for me,” he added, referring to his engagement to Kelsey Anderson.

Maher was instructed by Tonioli to perform a jive as her redemption dance – the same kind of dance that made her cry during the judging a week ago. The rugby player, who also performed a famous jazz number as Luisa from “Encanto” during the competition’s Disney night, delivered an upbeat jive set to “Shake a Tail Feather” that earned her and Bersten a 9 from every judge.

For her freestyle, the bronze medalist played up her femininity with a high-octane performance to “Femininomenon,” which Inaba said wowed her and earned her three perfect 10s.

Meanwhile, Live Nation announced Wednesday that Nedoroscik would be participating in Dancing With the Stars: Live! 2025 tour as co-host, with Maher and other fan favorites joining the traveling dance show on select dates. The show will make several stops in California this spring.

The cast will perform in Redding, Santa Rosa, San Jose and Temecula on March 22, 23, 25 and 30 respectively. The tour will stop in Santa Barbara, Indio and Los Angeles between April 3 and April 5.

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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.