Monaco Toughs It Out!

Even though she was suffering from both a fever and a foot injury, GENERAL HOSPITAL’s Kelly Monaco (Sam) proved to be a real trouper last night on DANCING WITH THE STARS when she and pro partner Val Chmerkovskiy wowed the judges with the show’s first-ever contemporary style dance. “I busted my toe, the fat one in the middle,” the actress lamented to Soaps In Depth at last night’s press line of the injury to her right foot. “I’m okay. I have a high [threshold].”

In fact, Chmerkovskiy didn’t even know his partner was injured at first! “She didn’t tell me about it until dress rehearsal,” he reveals. Why didn’t Monaco share the news of her pain? “I don’t want to hear, ‘Oh, that’s an excuse,'” she said. “I don’t want any excuses not to do well. I want to suck it up and do it.”

And “do it” she did! The pair is currently in third place. “She’s a talented individual with a work ethic,” praises Chmerkovskiy. “She doesn’t dwell on her flaws. She sucks it up and goes into battle every week.”

So don’t expect to see Monaco sidelined because of this injury! “I’m fine!” she insists. “It’s only a toe! I’ve got nine others.”