Dancing With the Stars: Athletes cast - Everything you need to know | Gallery

By Mariel Turner 8:47am PDT, Apr 27, 2018

"Dancing with the Stars" is back and this time, all the contestants are retired or actively competing athletes. In celebration of the "DWTS: Athletes" premiere on April 30, 2018, Wonderwall.com is giving you the lowdown on the cast! Keep reading to see which athletes are hitting the dance floor for a special four-week season…

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Olympic figure skater Tonya Harding is appearing on the 26th season of "Dancing With the Stars." Tonya is no stranger to competition, having previously skated in numerous U.S. Figure Skating Championships and two Olympics, winning the 1991 and 1994 U.S. championships (although her latter title was stripped). The 47-year-old retired skater was also the first American woman to successfully land a triple axel in competition and only the second woman ever to do so in history. But Tonya's skating career disintegrated in the wake of a highly publicized attack on fellow Olympian Nancy Kerrigan that was orchestrated by Tonya's ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly. Though she's denied having any prior knowledge of his plans to have a hitman break Nancy's leg, Tonya did plead guilty to "conspiring to hinder prosecution" of Nancy's attackers because she failed to report what she'd learned about it afterward. She was banned from figure skating for life in 1994. Since then, Tonya has bounced back working as a boxer, house painter, welder, landscaper and deck-builder. She welcomed a son, Gordon, with her new husband in 2011. Her story was turned into the Oscar-nominated film "I, Tonya" in 2017.

Adam Rippon — pictured here with pro partner Jenna Johnson — is trading his ice skates for dancing shoes on "Dancing with the Stars: Athletes." The figure skater came to fame after competing in the 2018 Winter Olympics where he won a bronze medal, becoming the first openly gay U.S. male athlete to win a medal in a Winter Olympics. Prior to the Olympics, Adam won the 2010 Four Continents Championships and the 2016 U.S. National Championships, and it seems he is also winning off the ice: In April, the 28 year old revealed that he's dating Finnish hunk Jussi-Pekka Kajaala.

Retired NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar will try his hand at dancing on "Dancing with the Stars: Athletes." The former Los Angeles Lakers player is a basketball great who was a record six-time NBA Most Valuable Player, a record 19-time NBA All-Star, a 15-time All-NBA selection and an 11-time NBA All-Defensive Team member. He was also a member of six NBA championship teams as a player and two as an assistant coach and was twice voted NBA Finals MVP. Talk about talented! When 71-year-old Kareem wasn't dominating in the NBA, he was spending time with his wife, Habiba Abdul-Jabbar, and three children, daughters Habiba and Sultana and son Kareem Jr. The couple divorced in 1978 and Kareem welcomed two more children, sons Amir and Adam, from other relationships.

Olympic figure skater Mirai Nagasu will be going for the gold, er, Mirror Ball Trophy, on "Dancing with the Stars: Athletes." The 25-year-old California native is a three-time Four Continents medalist, the 2007 JGP Final champion, a two-time World Junior medalist and a seven-time U.S. national medalist who took home a gold medal. Mirai is also a history-maker. She became the first American female figure skater to land a triple axel at the Olympics, which she did during her free skate in the team event at the 2018 Winter Olympics. Fans can also find Mirai posting cute PDA moments with her longtime boyfriend, actor Darian Weiss, on Instagram.

Olympic snowboarder Jamie Anderson is (temporarily) ditching the slopes for the dance floor on "Dancing With the Stars: Athletes." Like many of her fellow "DWTS" contestants, Jamie made history in her sport. The 27 year old won the gold medal in the inaugural Women's Slopestyle event at the 2014 Winter Olympics and repeated the accomplishment at the 2018 Winter Olympics, making her the first female snowboarder to win more than one Olympic gold medal. Counting her X Games appearances, Jamie has 11 medals in total, including four gold, five silver and two bronze. In addition to snowboarding, the California native also enjoys spending time with her boyfriend, fellow Olympic snowboarder Tyler Nicholson.

Notre Dame point guard Arike Ogunbowale knows how to win and is bringing that drive to "Dancing with the Stars: Athletes." The 21-year-old Milwaukee native hit not one but two buzzer-beater game-winning shots during the 2018 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament, securing a national title for her team. Arike is also a history-maker as she is the first active NCAA athlete to compete on "DWTS." Due to NCAA rules, Arike isn't allowed to promote her participation on the show in the media, but fans should still keep an eye out for her dance moves!

Retired Olympic softball pitcher Jennie Finch Daigle hopes to bring home a win on "Dancing with the Stars: Athletes." The 37 year old is accustomed to winning gold, having previously lead Team USA to the gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics. She is also a two-time pro All-Star and former collegiate All-American who won the 2001 Women's College World Series and helped Team USA win a silver medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Jennie decided to retire in 2010 to focus on her growing family with her husband, former Major League Baseball pitcher Casey Daigle. The couple share sons Ace Shane and Diesel Dean plus daughter Paisley Faye.

NFL cornerback Josh Norman is swapping his football cleats for dancing shoes on "Dancing with the Stars: Athletes." The Washington Redskins player is considered one of the best cornerbacks in professional football today. He was selected for the Pro Bowl all-star game in 2015 and signed a five-year, $75 million deal in 2016, making him the highest paid cornerback in NFL history at the time. Josh, who is a father to one daughter, may be a highly accomplished professional football player, but he still makes time to give back. The 30 year old donated $100,000 to Hurricane Maria recovery efforts in Puerto Rico in September 2017.

Olympic luger Chris Mazdzer is just like his fellow "Dancing with the Stars: Athletes" contestants: He's a history-making champion. The 29-year-old Massachusetts native won the silver medal in the Men's Single Luge at the 2018 Winter Olympics, becoming the first U.S. men's singles luge medalist. He is also the first and currently only non-European to win a medal in that event. Chris has been competing internationally since 2001 (when he was 13!) and competed at the 2010 Winter Olympics and the 2014 Winter Olympics. Fans can often spot Chris's girlfriend, Mara Marian, cheering him on from the stands.

Retired MLB player Johnny Damon is hoping to hit a home run on "Dancing with the Stars: Athletes." The former baseball outfielder played for the Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers, Tampa Bay Rays and Cleveland Indians before retiring in 2012. He won the World Series with the Red Sox in 2004 and again with the Yankees in 2009. Johnny is also the definition of a family man. He shares twins with ex-wife Angela Vannice and six children (!) with his current wife, Michelle Mangan. The couple have five daughters and welcomed a son in 2016.