Mark Ballas Jr.

Mark Ballas Jr. is a professional ballroom dancer who appears on ABC's reality show, Dancing with the Stars. Ballas is a member of the Ballas Hough Band where he plays lead guitar and sings.http://ballashough.com/

Mark Balllas was born in Houston, Texas but moved to London with his parents Corky and Shirley Ballas at an early age. Ballas' parents were international Dancesport champions in England with Mark Ballas following in the dancing shoes. He was named the British Juvenile Ballroom and Latin American Dance champion at age 10 years. In 2003, he teamed with Julianne Hough for the Junior Olympics with the pair winning gold medals. Mark Ballas Jr formed the band "Almost Amy" with his best friend Derek Hough. Derek Hough, Juliana Hough and Mark Ballas are all a part of the professional dancers who take part in the ABC reality show Dancing With the Stars. In other musical and acting roles, Ballas played lead in the musical "Copacabana" and was the lead dancer in the Spanish musical "Maria de Buenos Aires".http://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/mark-ballas/bio/290608

Ballas suffered a groin injury in late December 2008 during his tour with Dancing with the Stars. Ballas stated that he would have to "sit out for a couple of weeks to heal." He returned to the show for its eighth season.People: Mark Ballas Injured on Tour (December 28, 2008)

Mark Ballas Jr began working with Dancing with the Stars during the show's 5th season in 2007 when he teamed up with Cheetah Girl Sabrina Bryan. Although they were eliminated during the sixth week of airing, the two began dating in real life.TVGuide: Sabrina Bryan (November 4, 2007)

Ballas was partnered with Olympic gold medalist figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi for season 6. The pair won the season of the show on May 20, 2008.Official Site: Mark Ballas

On August 25, 2008, ABC Ballas returned for season 7 and was paired with Kim Kardashian.Official Site: New Cast Revealed

For the eighth season of Dancing, Ballas paired with Olympic athlete Shawn Johnson. On March 23, 2009, Robert O'Ryan was apprehended by police while trying to break into the set of the show in search of Johnson.TMZ: Gun-Toting Shawn Johnson Fan Arrested (March 25, 2009) Ballas and Johnson won the season.Official Site: Mark Ballas

In Season 10 of DWTS, Ballas was paired with Shannen Doherty, former 90210 star. By the second week of the season, the pair had accumulated a score of 38/60 placing them in the middle of the scoring competition.http://www.accesshollywood.com/kate-gosselin-and-tony-dovolani-spar-on-dancing-nicole-scherzinger-and-derek-hough-take-the-lead-again_article_30637 After the elimination round it was announced that during their Jive rehearsal Ballas hurt his knee and would be required to stay off it for six weeks. His partner Doherty would have had to dance with his father Mark Ballas Sr. However, the pair was eliminated during the round.

In Season 11, Ballas was partnered with Bristol Palin, the 19 year old daughter of previous Presidential candidate Sarah Palin.