How America’s Sweethearts: DCC's Victoria Kalina Stole the Show

It may have taken viewers a few episodes to decide how they felt about Victoria Kalina, who initially came off as a stereotypical, gung-ho cheerleader, right down to the bedroom plastered with Dallas Cowboys merch and memorabilia. But after she opened up about the mental health issues — an eating disorder and depression — that led her to take a year away from DCC, that candor won Us over and earned Kalina a spot in Us Weekly’s Reality Stars of the Year issue.

“It’s honestly so exhausting having to cover it up,” the 24-year-old tells Us. “Being open on such a huge platform as Netflix has been that therapeutic release I’ve needed.”

When asked whether mental health is a conversation with the cheerleading community, Kalina smiles: “I think now it is.”

Since Kalina’s move to New York City to pursue her dancing dreams — complete with Broadway ambitions and Rockette aspirations — she’s been approached by fans all over the city.

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“It’s crazy. My idol [or] icon would be Candace Cameron Bure. I know if I would run into her — you would have to have so much courage to go up to them. I just applaud all these people who come up to me who ask for pictures. I absolutely love it,” she says. “And just hearing the impact that I’ve had, you need those good vibes. I’d had some people say, ‘Don’t listen to the haters. … Not everyone is going to love you.’ But I honestly haven’t come across a lot of that, which I’m super grateful for.”

It’s hard not to ask: How does she manage life in the big city after that infamously low DCC salary?

“I have to give major, major, major compliments to my family and my mom. For one, living in the Dallas area so I could live at home. And I think being able to live at home and [with] my mom helping provide [for me], you save a lot,” she says. “I always knew that DCC was up [a goal] and Rockettes or New York was up here [too]. They were the same equal goals for me. … I definitely had planned accordingly.”

On the show, Kalina’s struggle to solidify friendships with the other women on the squad also felt very real, and hearts went out to her. “I definitely had a hard time connecting,” she notes. “I felt like I was being punished [for the year I took off].”

She stands by the choice, though.

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“I was meant to get cut that first year that I tried out just like I was meant to have that year off,” she says. “It was all meant to happen the way it played out.”

In a surprising — and moving — finale twist, she hung up her microshorts and fringe and opted not to return for her final season of eligibility. “I decided to put my time and energy elsewhere.”

But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t still “love” the Cowboys and DCC.

“I’m not gonna be the first one to sign up for the alumni halftime unless I feel like I’ve processed through it all,” she says. “I’m still a Texas girl. I’m still going to spend my Sundays watching football.”

For more with Kalina, pick up Us Weekly’s Reality Stars of the Year issue, on stands now.