Bindi Irwin paid an emotional tribute to her late father 'Crocodile Hunter' Steve Irwin during the first part of 'Dancing With The Stars’' two night finale on Monday evening. Irwin and her partner Derek Hough danced a freestyle routine to Leona Lewis’ ‘Footprints in the Sand’, scoring a perfect 30 from the judges and advancing on to night two.

Footprints in the sand. Never alone.So proud of this beautiful soul. @bindisueirwin #teamcrikey

A photo posted by Derek Hough (@derekhough) on

At the end of their routine, Irwin and Hough walked side-by-side over digitally-projected sand, while the footprints of Bindi’s father Steve appeared between them. The dance then ended with an image of a very young Bindi kissing her father on the cheek.

The 17 year old then embraced partner Derek Hough as emotions ran high in the studio. Bindi and her mother Terri Irwin both broke into tears after the routine, as did judges Julianne Hough and Leah Remini.

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"For me this whole experience has meant the world for my whole family and it's changed my life, this entire experience has changed my life,” Irwin said, before turning to Hough and adding, “thank you so much.”

In a pre-recorded package which aired before the routine, Bindi opened up about her experience with loosing her father at such a young age and her friendship with Hough. "You can see all the bruises on the outside," Bindi said, showing the injuries so far on the show, "and the inside of me is kind of the same."

"I never really talked about everything that I felt when dad passed away, and I never thought I'd revisit that," Bindi added. "But to have Derek there to say, 'It's OK, I'm there for you,' was something that I was so grateful for.”

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"Sometimes during rehearsals it feels like there's three people in the room. And I do feel like dad is still with me, every day." Bindi’s feeling that her father was with her throughout the competition was the inspiration for last night’s tribute and touching song choice.

Irwin and Hough will now compete for the mirrorball trophy in tonight’s season finale episode. They will be up against Alek Skarlatos and Lindsay Arnold as well as Backstreet Boy Nick Carter and his pro partner, Sharna Burgess.