On Jan. 6, 1994, figure skater Nancy Kerrigan, favored to win the upcoming 1994 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, was attacked by a metal-baton-wielding assailant as she left the ice after a practice session in Detroit.
The injured Kerrigan was forced out of the competition and in her absence, 1991 champion Tonya Harding captured the spotlight, the U.S. title, and a spot on the U.S. Olympic team for the following month's Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway.
The mystery surrounding the bizarre attack unraveled quickly, however.
Shawn Eckardt, an accomplice in the assault, spilled details about the plot to the FBI saying it was hatched with Harding's ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly, to get Kerrigan out of the way.
Eventually Harding admitted that she knew about the attack after the fact but failed to come forward. The United States Olympic Committee was believed to preparing to kick Harding off the Olympic team until Harding's lawyers filed a $25 million lawsuit.
Kerrigan recovered in time to compete in Lillehammer, and the stage was set for the ultimate showdown. The suffocating media coverage gave the entire proceedings an electric atmosphere. It was good versus evil on the world's biggest stage. It was called the Battle of Wounded Knee II.
Heading into the finals, Kerrigan was in first place, ahead of Ukrainian teenager and world champion Oksana Baiul and France's Surya Bonaly. Harding was a distant 10th.
In the finals, a controversial 5–4 split among the judges gave the gold to Baiul by the slimmest of margins. Kerrigan got silver. Harding almost failed to appear on the ice when her name was called for the free skate because she was scrambling to replace a broken lace. The replacement lace turned out to be too short, and after missing the opening jump in her program she had to tearfully ask the referee for permission to restart.
On February 1, 1994, Gillooly accepted a plea bargain in exchange for his testimony against Harding. Harding avoided further prosecution and a possible jail sentence by pleading guilty to hindering the investigation of the attack. She received three years probation, 500 hours of community service and a $160,000 fine. She maintained her innocence in the planning of the attack, contradicting the confessions of the alleged conspirators.
After conducting its own investigation of the attack, the U.S. Figure Skating Association concluded that Harding knew of the attack before it happened, stripped Harding's 1994 title and banned her for life from participating in sanctioned events and becoming a sanctioned coach. Although the USFSA has no control over professional skating events, Harding was also persona non grata on the pro circuit because few skaters and promoters would work with her. Consequently, Harding did not herself benefit from the pro skating boom that ensued in the aftermath of the scandal.
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