Jewel to Injured Melissa Rycroft: Dance or Leave
Jewel, Melissa Rycroft
Jewel has a message for Melissa Rycroft and any injured Dancing with the Stars celebrity: If you don't dance, you should leave, the songstress says.
"Being a rodeo and bull-riding fan it's hard for me to get used to someone who is injured still getting a score," the singer writes on husband Ty Murray's MySpace. "I think the rule about 'judging a rehearsal if the person is too injured to perform' was weird both times they have used it."
The Dancing rulebook states a contestant's rehearsal footage will be judged if he or she is too injured to compete. It was first put into practice for Steve-O, who hurt his back in Week 2, and was used again this week for Rycroft after she suffered a hairline fracture in her rib.
"As bad as I felt for Melissa, who I hope feels better and comes back, I'm used to our cowboy athletes that live by the rule: 'ride hurt or don't get a score,' Jewel writes. "It may seem harsh, but it seems like the only way to keep things honest. If you're too hurt to compete, then you can't compete."
Jewel, who withdrew from the show prior to the premiere due to injury, adds: "But if I were to be on the show I might change my mind. Hahah!"
But don't think she's being bitter. The singer clarified her remarks on her own MySpace Friday, saying her comments were directed at the show's rule, not Rycroft.
"I like Melissa and think she's gifted (and a real Texas sweetheart), and I adore Steve-O. My comment had nothing to do with either of them. My comment was on a sports website about a rule I have never seen in any type of competition before. Name another sport where if you can't compete, they use your score from practice," she wrote. "This isn't a catty girl versus girl thing they are trying to make it into — neither I nor Melissa are like that."
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