At the beginning of the night, Dancing With The Stars seemed to belong to either Melissa Rycroft or Giles Marini – that is until Lil Kim and Derek Hough performed. Even though the rapper – fresh from hard time – was eliminated, it was clear that she was a judge, host, and fan favorite. However, she was not in the competition, and neither was Gymnast Shawn Johnson if you listened to the armchair dance pundits. That didn’t matter much tonight as Dancing With The Stars announced a shocking winner.

Allegedly by the closest margin ever, Shawn Johnson picked up Dancing With The Stars trophy tonight netting herself an unexpected victory. America loves an underdog, and they proved it by voting the spritely gymnast, whose Olympic grade skills certainly came in handy, to the top of the Dancing With The Stars card for the evening.

For their part, Melissa Rycroft and Giles Marini certainly put up a ferocious challenge for Johnson. Johnson, despite her obvious advantages, exudes a certain girl next door charm that somewhat out of place against the sultry Rycroft and foxy Marini. In a contest that seems to thrive on sex appeal, you’d think third place would be a natural place for Johnson despite her studied grace and superior physical skills.

Rycroft, the famously jilted Bachelor reject and former Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader, had been favored to win the contest. She had replaced an injured Jewell and like former contestant Steve O stirred up a bit of controversy when she was allowed to continue despite not being able to compete due to a rib injury.