Donald Trump's ex-wife Marla Maples has been named as a contestant on "Dancing With the Stars," heading a list of 12 new contestants who will appear in Season 22 which begins March 21.
Maples, 52, was married to the Republican presidential frontrunner from 1993 to 1999, but separating in 1997, noted
E! News. The actress, who had one daughter with Trump, performed in movies "Maximum Overdrive" (1986) and "Executive Decision" (1996) and had also hosted a radio talk show.
Maples, who hosted Trump's Miss Universe Pageant in 1996 and 1997, will be paired with professional dancer Tony Dovolani, noted
People magazine.
Joining Maples and Dovolani for the new season are, according to
ABC News:
"Good Morning America" weather anchor Ginger Zee, with dancer Val Chmerkovskiy;
Pittsburgh Steeler wide receiver Antonio Brown, with Sharna Burgess;
Former NFL star Doug Flutie, with Karina Smirnoff;
Singer Wanya Morris, with Lindsay Arnold;
Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller, with Witney Carson
Model Nyle Dimarco, with Peta Murgatroyd
Actress Jodie Sweetin, with Keo Motsepe;
Actress Mischa Barton, with Artem Chigvintsev
Mixed martial artist Paige VanZant, with Mark Ballas
Actress Kim Fields, with Sasha Farber;
Fox News celebrity Geraldo Rivera, with Edyta Sliwinska.
Maples happily shared the news with her followers on Twitter this week.
"I feel like, 'Oh my gosh! Is this the beauty pageant world again?'" Maples told People on Tuesday. "No, this is really digging in with the real stuff."
Maples said her daughter, Tiffany Trump, 22, who will graduate from the University of Pennsylvania in the spring, was surprised that she decided to go through with the contest.
"She was scared," Maples told reporters. "She goes 'You're really doing this?' She was very, very surprised because she knows how nervous I've been about it. … Now she's happy and now she is my biggest supporter. Oh my gosh. I want her right here right now."