Cheryl Burke Says She ‘Wasn’t Invited’ to Return for Len Goodman’s Tribute on Dancing with the Stars

Cheryl Burke will not be participating in the upcoming Len Goodman tribute episode Dancing with the stars.

In a post shared with Threads on Thursday, Burke, 39, confirmed she will not be attending Tuesday’s tribute.

“For those of you asking if I’ll be a part of the Len Goodman tribute next week on DWTS, unfortunately I wasn’t invited, but I’ll be there in spirit and can’t wait to cheer on my former co-stars! ” she wrote. “Sending love and light to everyone. 🤍🙏🏼 #riplen.”

Repetitions for Dancing with the stars did not respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

On this week’s episode of the competitive dance show, co-hosts Alfonso Ribeiro and Julianne Hough revealed their plans to honor the late head judge — who died at age 78 in April — with a touching dance tribute during the Oct. 24 episode.

The special will prompt the return of other exes DWTS professionals such as Maks Chmerkovskiy, Kym Johnson-Herjavec, Tony Dovolani, Anna Trebunskaya, Edyta Śliwińska, Karina Smirnoff, Louis van Amstel and Mark Ballas.

The series has already paid tribute to Goodman once during the season 32 premiere, in which Hough and Ribeiro spoke highly of the legendary judge. “Len will always go forward with us,” Hough said at the time.

Cheryl Burke.

Corine Solberg/Getty

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Goodman died of bone cancer on April 22 while receiving care at a hospital in Kent, England. Since his death, his former associates at Dancing with the stars they made sure to honor his legacy on the show, even renaming the coveted Mirrorball trophy after him.

“The Len Goodman Mirrorball trophy will now be raised Dancing with the stars like Vince Lombardi’s trophy being hoisted at the Super Bowl,” said executive producer Conrad Green USA Today in September.

Green continued, “We wanted to make Len a permanent part of this show, to always remind people of the importance he had on Dancing with the Stars and how much he meant to all of us. Len loves this show and will always be there, looking down on us.”

Len Goodman. Getty Images Len Goodman’s Most Memorable Moments on ‘Dancing with the Stars’

While speaking with PEOPLE following the Season 32 casting announcement, Ribeiro also revealed how the show planned to honor the dance judge’s legacy in Season 1 following his death.

“I can guarantee you that each of those professionals will make sure that the routines are still designed for Len,” Riberio explained. “I know I’ve talked to a few of them and they’re going to put in certain steps that Len liked, just to make sure the content is still there for Len.”

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air The alum also assured fans that “there won’t be a dry eye in the house” when the Goodman tribute episode arrives. “It will be amazing. I mean, he was the best,” he added.

Len Goodman’s former ‘Dancing with the Stars’ co-stars react to his death: ‘We will miss you’

As for Burke, the former professional announced her decision to leave Dancing with the stars in November 2022 after 17 years and 26 seasons.

Cheryl Burke in ‘Dancing with the Stars’.

Christopher Willard via Getty

Cheryl Burke talks about the mental and physical toll of her professional dancing career

“I cried non-stop,” she told PEOPLE at the time. “It was very emotional [are] a lot of emotions and a lot of excitement, but there is also a lot of fear. At the end of the day, this is actually maybe another divorce the way I go in a year.”

Burke rose to fame on the show when she won her first Mirrorball trophy, alongside singer Drew Lachey, in Season 2. She then took home her second trophy in Season 3 with former NFL player Emmitt Smith, with whom she danced again during the show’s All -Star season 15. She danced with 25 different celebrity partners during her run on the show, which began in 2006.

After Goodman’s retirement last year, Burke said she would consider returning to the series to judge. (Currently, fellow pro Derek Hough, as well as Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba sit on the judging panel.)

“I think the whole world knows at this point that I would definitely like it. But it’s not up to me,” she said. “What depends on me is my future and I know it’s time to develop and see what else there is. Because there is life after Dancing with the stars, so I heard. I don’t know yet. I’ll let you know.”

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Dancing with the stars airs Tuesdays at 8:00 PM ET on ABC and Disney+.

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Source: HIS Education