Karina Smirnoff Engaged to Her 'Soulmate'

By Emily Hall Posted Nov 11th 2010 06:00PM

With her exotic good looks and busy lifestyle as a successful professional dancer on 'Dancing With the Stars,' it's no surprise Karina Smirnoff has found true love.

Earlier this month, the Ukrainian-born Smirnoff announced her engagement to St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Brad Penny.

"Karina fell in love with Brad because he treats her like a lady, likes to laugh and even with a middle American, down-to-earth manner, he has seen the world through sports," a source close to Smirnoff tells PopEater. "He is different from other guys she has dated."

After dating for more than a year and vacationing together in the Turks and Caicos last winter, the dancer is now sporting a 4.5 carat Asscher cut diamond engagement ring from Penny, according to PEOPLE.

Penny was born and raised in Blackwell, Oklahoma, where he was an All-Metro and All-State selection and Frontier Conference Pitcher of the Year, according to his sports bio. In 1996, he was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks.

He has since pitched for the Florida Marlins and Los Angeles Dodgers, and as a free agent signed a $7.5 million contract with the Cardinals, according to the Associated Press.

Penny has been sidelined with an upper back injury, but like a true professional, he's anxious to get back on the mound soon.

Smirnoff has a history of seeing men in the public eye, especially those with whom she's shared the dance floor. She joined 'Dancing With The Stars' in 2006, during its third season, and was paired up with TV personality Mario Lopez. They came in second in the competition and dated for two years.

"They looked good as a couple, but each was building a career and busy with travel, so it didn't work out," a friend of Smirnoff's tells us.

After the split, Smirnoff got hot and heavy with fellow Ukrainian 'Dancing With the Stars' pro Maksim Chmerkovskiy. They became engaged but split last year after what looked like a passionate nine-month courtship.

She started dating Penny soon after. "At first, she thought of Brad as a fun pal and good friend," says the source. "But as the relationship deepened and she saw how sweet and unselfish he was around her, she knew she had found something different. And most important, she has a soul mate."

Perhaps the bridal waltz will be her next step.

Tags: Brad Penny, dancing with the stars, karina smirnoff

Comments

(21)

Thursday 11 November

By Thor

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Takes more than a big rock to make a soulmate. We'll see how unselfish SHE is, in time.

By KR

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He's only after her Vodka fortune inheritance.

Friday 12 November

By zheofghgncb

Soulmate is celebrity talk for soon to be ex. That is such a stupid buzzword for the new age dumb a'sI love this , So does My boyfriend .he is almost 11year older than me .i met him via agegapsingl es.c 'om a nice place for seeking age le ss love.which gives you a chance to make your life better and open opportunities for you to meet the attractive young girls and treat you like a king. Maybe you wanna check it out or tell your friends.. Just love it

By RJ

Another Daffy Duck fake lips look

By Patty Roldan

She must of have been crazy to break up with Maks Chmerkovskiy. He is one sexy spicy hot Russian. Damn he is handsome.

By me

Must HAVE, not must OF.

Wednesday 13 April

By syl1969

Thank you me! I am so sick of seeing could of, should of, must of - how did these people graduate high school???? It's HAVE people!!! Oh, and how about "so sorry for your lost" instead of loss. I could go on and on. It's really sad...

By montana

OH Please, she found a chump. Run dude, as fast as you can !!

By judy

SHE WAS ALWAYS SUCH A WITCH ON DANCING WITH THE STARS. SHE WAS SO MEAN AND IMPATIENT TO THE PEOPLE SHE WAS TEACHING TO DANCE. MAKS WAS WAY TOO GOOD FOR HER, I COULD NEVER UNDERSTAND WHAT HE SAW IN HER TO BEGIN WITH, SHE SEEMS SO EVIL. GOOD LUCK TO THIS GUY, I HOPE HE WISES UP!!

By susan

Stop shouting!

By Fishpaw

Now e know why he spent most of the season on the disabled list. Unless he plans on retiring..... RUN AS FAST AS YOU CAN PENNY

I love how every divorced couple starts out saying they're "soulmates". Please.

By Carolyn

oh please, her soulmate???!!!!!! Every time she gets engaged, she's found her soulmate!!

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Right, and her brother Yakov is the other heir. Smirnoff is like Smith in US.

She's trash

By earl taylor

Ha. Soulmates?