Amber Glenn’s preparation for Dancing With the Stars’ Yacht Rock Night took an emotional turn when a rehearsal accident left professional partner Pasha Pashkov needing medical attention — and Glenn struggling to hold back tears.
The Olympic figure skater and Pashkov were rehearsing their foxtrot to Toto’s “Hold the Line” when one of their movements went wrong and Glenn accidentally struck Pashkov in the face.
Pashkov was left with a bloody nose and briefly experienced nausea and light-headedness, prompting the rehearsal to stop while he was checked out.
For Glenn, seeing her partner hurt was overwhelming.
She became visibly emotional and began crying as she processed what had happened, explaining that she had never caused someone that much physical pain before. Her reaction showed just how quickly the accident had shaken her confidence during what had otherwise been a productive rehearsal.
Pashkov, however, tried to reassure his partner rather than blame her. The professional dancer recovered from the accident and later confirmed that he was doing fine, allowing the pair to continue preparing for the live show.
That made what happened next even more impressive.
Instead of allowing the frightening rehearsal moment to derail them, Glenn and Pashkov stepped onto the ballroom floor for Yacht Rock Night and delivered their foxtrot to “Hold the Line.”
The judges clearly noticed Glenn’s progress. Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli each awarded the couple an 8, giving them a total of 24 out of 30 — their highest score of the season so far.
The performance was another important step in Glenn’s transition from elite figure skating to ballroom dancing. While some of the flowing movement of a foxtrot plays naturally to her skating background, ballroom requires her to relearn how she moves with a partner and adapt to an entirely different kind of technique.
Glenn credited Pashkov with helping her connect the strengths she developed on the ice with what DWTS demands on the dance floor. That partnership made the rehearsal accident especially emotional for her — the person she relies on most in the ballroom was suddenly the person she had accidentally hurt.
But the difficult rehearsal ultimately didn’t define their week. Glenn went from crying and worrying about her partner to standing beside him after their strongest-scoring routine yet.
And after a rehearsal that could easily have shaken both dancers, their 24-point foxtrot became proof that Amber and Pasha were able to recover, regroup and turn one of their most stressful moments into one of their best performances of the season.
