Gleb Savchenko is doing the best he can to be present for his daughters despite their recent relocation to Hong Kong.
“It’s really, really hard to stay connected because of the time difference. But I try my best,” the Dancing With the Stars dancer, 40, exclusively told Us Weekly on Tuesday, July 16, while promoting his six upcoming shows with Chippendales at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City. “I visited them during Christmas. I took them to Thailand for three weeks.”
Savchenko shares daughters Olivia, 13, and Zlata, 7, with ex-wife Elena Samodanova. The exes split in 2020 after 14 years of marriage and settled their divorce the following year. Savchenko told Us that his children moved to Hong Kong “last year.”
After Savchenko wraps up his final Chippendales shows in Atlantic City, he plans on “flying to Hong Kong” so he can “spend a couple of weeks” with his kids before the next season of DWTS, which will premiere on September 17.
While Savchenko acknowledged that it is “hard” to coparent with the distance, he gushed about how great a mom Samodanova is.
“I think my ex-wife, she’s a great mom and she loves her girls,” he told Us. “She does so much for them.”
Savchenko shared that both his girls like to dance. While Olivia participates in competitive ballroom, Zlata has a yellow belt in karate.
“She wants to be Rapunzel Ninja. She’s like, ‘I want to be Rapunzel Ninja. And I was like, well, you have to learn Kung Fu.’ She was like, ‘No, first I need to nail the karate, get a black belt, and then I’m going to be studying Kung Fu,” he said of his youngest. “And the older one dances fully ballroom, and [is] doing all the competitions. On the 2nd of August, I’m taking her to Taiwan for the World Championship. She has a partner in Hong Kong and we’re all flying to Taiwan.”
Before Savchenko can jet off to Hong Kong, he has six more Chippendales shows in Atlantic City. His final run of shows with the troupe starts on Thursday, July 18. The dancer gushed about how much “fun” the experience has been and how it’s boosted his self-esteem.
“I actually gained a lot of confidence. I told a few of my friends ‘If I can do Chippendales and do that, you can do anything,’” he quipped. “It’s a lot of fun. It’s a Broadway show with sexy boys.”
Gleb Savchenko Courtesy Chippendales
Savchenko explained that he was inspired to pursue the opportunity after he got complimented by one of his friends.
“The whole thing came around [when] I was on tour with Dancing With the Stars and then the quick change in between the dancers,” he told Us. “My friend saw me changing and he saw me in [my] underwear and he was like, ‘Gleb, you look so good. You should do Chippendales!’”
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Savchenko knew the show would be a good time since his pals Vinny Guadagnino and Tony Dovolani were alums of the production. Ahead of his performances, Savchenko shared that Guadagnino told him about his experience.
“I talked to Vinny a little bit. He was like, ‘Dude, it’s such a high-energy show. You’re going to love it. Girls go crazy.’ I was like, that’s what I need,” he teased.
Chippendales will be at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City from July 18 to 21. Tickets range from $59-$89 and are available at Ticketmaster.com and Chippendales.com.
With reporting by Christina Garibaldi
