Melissa Rycroft, who was dumped by Jason Mesnick on the season finale of The Bachelor, will take the place of Nancy O’Dell and compete on ABC’s Dancing With the Stars.

 

The Access Hollywood host Nancy O’Dell had to withdraw from the show after she got injured along with singer Jewel. The latter will be replaced by Holly Madison from E!'s The Girls Next Door. 

 

Let’s hope Melissa Rycroft, a former Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader, and Holly Madison will do well in tonight’s premiere although, considering the fact that they had considerably less time to rehearse with their partners than their competition had, their chances aren’t really that good.

 

Melissa Rycroft’s professional partner is Tony Dovolani, while Holly Madison will hit the dance floor with Dmitry Chaplin.

 

Melissa Rycroft, a 25-year-old sales representative, gained recognition after “wining” The Bachelor last week. Unfortunately for her, she was dumped minutes later on After The Final Rose by Jason Mesnick. 

 

Although Melissa may not have the star status yet, ABC did a smart move by inviting her to compete in Dancing With the Stars. It was all about numbers of course, because last week's edition of Bachelor finale recorded the highest ratings for ABC in the coveted adults 18-49 demographic in over two and a half years.

 

"I don't regret anything that happened over the past few months; because I know I wouldn't be where I am today had none of it happened.  I have, however, decided to move on from my reality television days, and get some sense of normalcy back to my life," wrote Rycroft in a parting The Bachelor statement.