'Dancing with the Stars' 2013winner: Amber Riley

Amber Riley and Derek Hough are the season 17 winners of
"Dancing with the Stars."
This is the fifth mirror ball trophy for Hough.
The finale looked and felt like a big family reunion. The
finalists — Riley and Hough, Corbin Bleu and Karina Smirnoff
and Jack Osbourne and Cheryl Burke — were joined by the
eliminated cast members. Each ousted couple performed one
of their most popular routines during the two-hour finale.
Lastnight, the three remaining couples competed in the 24-
Hour Dance Fusion contest, which required them to combine
two styles they received at the end of Monday's episode.
This was especially difficult because each couple had less
than a day to choreograph and rehearse two entirely
different routines. The scores from this dance were added
to Monday's totals and the viewer votes from last night to
determine the winner.
During the show's opening, Hough speculated the season
17's finale could be decided by viewer votes.
"It might not be about the highest scorers ... it might not be
about the dances at all," he said.
If any pair had viewer votes to thank for their survival in
the competition, it was Bill Engvall and Emma Slater, who
received the judges' lowest scores each week. The couple
was sent home Monday night.
As past seasons have shown, the mirror ball trophy isn't
always awarded to the best dancer. Judges also tend to
place great value on the star who improves the most during
the competition. If that held true tonight, Osbourne would
have won. Of the finalists, he was the only contestant
without a dance background.
Here's how it all went down:
The finale included performances from Enrique Iglesias, Lady
Antebellum, Colbie Caillat and Ylvis, whose song "What Does
the Fox Say" was used during a group dance this season.

FREESTYLE ENCORE
Twitter voters chose to see Riley and Hough's freestyle
performance from Monday night which included a step
routine designed by the "Glee" star.

FUSION ROUND

Corbin Bleu and Karina Smirnoff
For the fusion round, Bleu and Smirnoff performed a
foxtrot/cha cha.
"The fact that you got that out of the bag in such a short
time was just incredible," Bruno Tonioli told the couple. He
complimented Bleu on his "flair for Latin" dance.
While it was fun to watch, it wasn't a finale performance.
Bleu made noticeable blunders during the cha cha which all
three judges were critical of.
Total Score: 9, 9, 9 = 27
Jack Osbourne and Cheryl Burke
"You're my favorite partner of all time," Burke told Osbourne
during their rehearsal.
The couple danced the salsa/paso doble. Osbourne
improved on his timing but chased the music at some points.
"Your timing was very good," Tonioli said.
Inaba told Osbourne he was off during the salsa but
complimented his progress throughout the season.
Osbourne told Inaba he didn't know that salsa was
something more than a dip, before last night's rehearsals.
"Out of all of the celebrities, you have given me the biggest
pleasure to watch," Goodman said to Osbourne.
Total Score: 9, 9, 9 = 27
Amber Riley and Derek Hough
Riley and Hough danced a samba/quick step routine to "Your
Love Lifted Me Higher," winning the praise of all three
judges. It was hard to believe that they had only a day to
prepare their choreography, which was executed
seamlessly.
"It was supposed to be a fusion but you guys created a
whole new dance," Inaba said of their routine.
"You are absolutely bedazzling," Goodman told Riley. "You
are a fantastic dancer."
Tonioli said he counted each step and didn't find a mistake
by the pair.
Total Score: 10, 10, 10 = 30
The first star to be eliminated was Osbourne, who said he
never imagined he'd ever make it this far in the competition.
Bleu placed second, which is the same spot he entered
tonight's competition.
After she was announced as the winner, Riley said she
wanted to be an inspiration to people of all sizes. She
thanked Hough for his support and encouragement and said
she overcame many fears by taking part in the competition.
To loyal viewers of the show, it was no surprise that the
season came down to Bleu and Riley. Both have topped the
scoreboards each week. And while some would argue their
backgrounds in performance gave them an advantage in the
competition, neither one had experience in ballroom dance.
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