Guilty, banned, and broken: The decision that ruined Tonya Harding's career

Few scandals in the history of sports have been as captivating as the assault on Nancy Kerrigan before the United States Figure Skating Championships in January 1994. 

Kerrigan was forced to withdraw from the championships after she was hit with a telescopic baton by a then-unknown assailant, leaving many to question who did it.

In a video taken just moments after the assault, Kerrigan could be seen crying on a hard arena floor while yelling, “Why, why…why?” in reference to her injured knee. 

Photo by Facebook @AllOnGeorgiaChattooga

Suspicion immediately fell on Kerrigan’s long-term skating rival, Tonya Harding. But Harding denied the accusations and the incident spiraled into a real-life soap opera.

Two days after Kerrigan was attacked, Harding won gold at the 1994 U.S. Figure Skating Championships and secured her spot at the Lillehammer Winter Olympics. 

While Kerrigan couldn’t compete in the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, she was expected to heal in time for the Olympics and The Washington Post wrote at the time that Kerrigan was likely to be given a spot on the US Team, which she eventually was. 

On January 12th, an FBI investigation into Kerrigan’s attack led them to Harding’s longtime bodyguard Shawn Eckardt, who confessed that he had been involved. 

Less than two weeks after Eckardt's confession, the FBI issued a warrant for the arrest of Jeff Gillooly, Tonya Harding’s ex-husband, and alleged mastermind behind the plot to cripple Nancy Kerrigan so she couldn’t compete in the Lillehammer Winter Olympics. 

Gillooly would not only reveal that he had hired Derrick Smith and Shane Stant to injure Kerrigan but would also say Harding was in on the plot to attack her figure skating rival. 

Tonya Harding denied any involvement in Kerrigan’s attack, issuing a statement to the press that read: "Despite my mistakes and rough edges, I have done nothing to violate the standards of excellence in sportsmanship that are expected in an Olympic athlete."

According to People Magazine, evidence was eventually recovered from Harding's trash that convinced authorities “she had planned out the attack on her skating rival, Nancy Kerrigan,” though this was not enough to disqualify her from the Olympics. 

The stage was set for an epic encounter between the two figure skaters at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics, and neither disappointed audiences. 

In her first appearance on the ice, Kerrigan wore the same outfit she was in when she was attacked, later telling the media: "Humor is good, it's empowering."

Kerrigan would go on to win the silver medal at the Olympics. Losing out on the gold to Ukrainian skater Oksana Baiul. But at least she got to watch her rival and alleged would-be assailant fall apart in spectacular fashion. 

“Harding got on the ice late to start her program, attempted one jump, then tearfully skated over to the referees and said she had broken a boot lace on her right boot,” wrote The Oregonian in a sports report published shortly after Harding’s performance. 

"To the boos and whistles of 6,000 figure skating fans at the Hamar Olympic Amphitheater, Harding was allowed to leave the ice and skate her program at the end of her group of skaters,” The Oregonian added. 

When Harding returned to the ice she would skate poorly, finishing 8th overall. Three weeks later she pleaded guilty to "conspiracy to hinder prosecution" for their role in trying to cover up Kerrigan’s attack, according to The Tennessean. 

Harding avoided jail time for her crime but was fined $100,000 and eventually had her national championship revoked and was permanently banned from figure skating.