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

The former 'DWTS' pro announced her departure from the competitive reality series in November 2022 after 17 years and 26 seasons

Cheryl Burke will not be participating in Len Goodman’s upcoming tribute episode on Dancing with the Stars.

In a post shared to Threads on Thursday, Burke, 39, confirmed she would not be in attendance for Tuesday's tribute.

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

Reps for Dancing with the Stars have not responded 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 former DWTS pros like Maks Chmerkovskiy, Kym Johnson-Herjavec, Tony Dovolani, Anna Trebunskaya, Edyta Śliwińska, Karina Smirnoff, Louis van Amstel and Mark Ballas.

The show has already honored Goodman once before during its season 32 premiere, in which Hough and Ribeiro spoke highly of the legendary judge. "Len will always be going forward with us," Hough said at the time.

Related: Cheryl Burke Looks Back on 'Blood, Sweat and Tears' in Sweet Note to Former' DWTS' Partners

On April 22, Goodman died from bone cancer while in hospice care in Kent, England. Since his death, his former costars on Dancing with the Stars have made sure to honor his legacy on the show, and even renamed the coveted Mirrorball trophy after him.

“The Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy will now be lifted on Dancing with the Stars like the Vince Lombardi trophy is lifted at the Super Bowl,” executive producer Conrad Green told USA Today in September.

Green continued, “We wanted to make Len a permanent part of this show, to always remind people the importance he’s had to 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."

Related: Len Goodman's Most Memorable Moments on 'Dancing with the Stars'

While speaking to PEOPLE after the season 32 casting announcement, Ribeiro also revealed how the show planned to honor the ballroom judge’s legacy in the first season since his death.

“I can guarantee you that every one of those pros will be making sure that the routines are still designed for Len,” Riberio explained. "I know I've talked to a few of them and they will be putting in specific steps that Len used to love, just to make sure that the content is still there for Len.”

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

Related: Len Goodman's Former 'Dancing with the Stars' Costars React to His Death: 'We Will Miss You'

As for Burke, the former pro announced her decision to walk away from Dancing with the Stars in November 2022 after 17 years and 26 seasons.

Related: Cheryl Burke Discusses the Mental and Physical Toll of Her Pro Dancing Career

"I have been crying nonstop," she told PEOPLE at the time. "It has been very emotional. There [are] a lot of emotions and there's lots of excitement, but there's also lots of fear. At the end of the day, this is actually maybe another divorce in a way that I'm going through in one year."

Burke made a name for herself 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, who she danced with again during the show's All-Star season 15. She danced with 25 different celebrity partners over her tenure on the show which began in 2006.

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

"I think the whole world knows at this point that I would definitely love to. But it's not up to me," she said. "What is up to me is my future, and I do know that it is time for me to evolve and see what else there is. Because there is life after Dancing with the Stars, so I've heard. I don't know yet. I'll let you know."

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Dancing with the Stars airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and Disney+.

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