Laois Rose Katelyn Cummins dances to victory in Dancing with the Stars finale

LAOIS Rose Katelyn Cummins has been announced as the winner of Dancing with the Stars 2026.

The apprentice electrician won the Glitterball trophy following an electric performance alongside her professional dance partner, Leonardo Lini.

Each of the four finalists danced two routines for the finale, broadcast yesterday, 15 March, including a ‘showdance’ routine combining different dance styles.

Katelyn reprised her ‘movie week’ role of Snow White, as she and Leonardo danced an American Smooth to ‘Whistle While You Work’ by Rachel Zegler. For their ‘showdance’ routine, they performed to ‘Ordinary’ by Alex Warren. In total, they received two perfect scores amounting to 80 points.

Judges praised the pair for their dancing skills. Judge Oti Mabuse said their American Smooth performance was “absolute perfection”, while judge Arthur Gourounlian said the pair were “phenomenal.” A section of Katelyn's ‘showdance’ routine was muted to highlight hearing disabilities.

The pair won the public over, receiving the most public votes. Katelyn's family, who were in attendance, rushed to the stage to celebrate her win.

Katelyn said: “Life is not real, every day it surprises me. What a year … Winning the Rose of Tralee and this, two massive wins I've had this year. I could have never imagined that this would be my life, and I'm so happy to have shared it with Leonardo.” 

Katelyn’s dance partner, Leonardo Lini, said that Dancing with the Stars 2026 had been one of the best experiences of his life. “I have to thank you for that,” he said to a joyous Katelyn.

Katelyn and Leonardo competed against Eric Roberts and his partner Arianna Favarro, Tolü Makay and her partner Maciej Zieba, and The Traitors Ireland star Paudie Moloney and his partner Laura Nolan.

The finale opened with a group dance to ‘Absolutely Everybody’ by Vanessa Amorosi, featuring the finalists, professional dancers and judges.

Towards the end of the show, after the four finalists performed, all eliminated contestants from this season of Dancing with the Stars returned for group dance to ‘Stay (If You Wanna Dance)’ by Myles Smith.

Katleyn, who was crowned Rose of Tralee in 2025, was announced as a contestant in the dance competition in December 2025. She and her partner, Leonardo Lini, regularly topped polling throughout the season.

She told the Laois Nationalist in February that she accepted the offer to compete in the series with delight. “I've watched Dancing with the Stars for the last few years that it's been on … You’d always watch it. It’s part of being Irish.”