History Book: Rivals on ice

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NICK EICHER, HOST: Up next, The World History Book. Today, one of the biggest scandals in figure skating history.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: As the 2026 Winter Olympics kicks off this Friday in Northern Italy, we take a look back to 1994, when figure skaters Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan were getting ready to compete in the winter Olympics.

Competition was fierce, and tensions flared.

WORLD’s Mary Muncy has the story.

MARY MUNCY: In 1994, Nancy Kerrigan was practicing her figure skating routine the day before the National Championship. She was favored to be in the top two and earn a spot at the Olympics.

After practice, she walked off the ice, slipping past camera crews, and behind a curtain toward an exit.

KERRIGAN ATTACK: [SCREAMING, CRYING]

The cameras and Kerrigan’s parents found her on the ground, holding her knee.

KERRIGAN: Why? Why? Why?

She said a man hit her right knee with a black pipe. But she hadn’t gotten a good look at him.

Soon after at a different rink, news crews ambushed her main competitor, Tonya Harding.

JOURNALIST: What's your take on the Nancy Kerrigan situation? I'm sure it bothers a lot of people; how do you feel about it?

HARDING: It definitely bothers me… I was looking forward to competing against her. And you know, I just hope that she's okay.

Kerrigan sustained a nasty bone bruise. But luckily, no break and no ligament damage.

Harding and Kerrigan were two sides of the same coin. They both came from poor families that scrimped to pay for lessons. But Kerrigan’s home was stable, while Harding’s was abusive. 

And when she got married in 1991, she says her husband hit her too.

But a gold medal would bring brand deals and coaching opportunities.

NEWSREEL: Live from Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. It's the L’eggs US Figure Skating Championships.

Kerrigan watched from the sidelines, unable to compete. Harding won first. She was going to the Olympics. But Kerrigan thought she still deserved a spot, too…

NEWSREEL: We are waiting for the Olympic team selection.

Kerrigan told the Olympic committee she would be able to compete in just six weeks. They believed her.

NEWSREEL: Okay, it is official now. Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding will go to the Olympic Games representing the United States.

Kerrigan began physical therapy, while Harding trained harder than ever.

The two had very different styles.

Harding had a blunt athleticism that made her the first female American figure skater to land a triple axel in competition, but her style had drawbacks. She had to land her difficult jumps to score well.

Kerrigan on the other hand, may not have had the same jumps, but she earned points for fluid choreography.

Kerrigan’s coach, Mary Scotvold talked to ESPN in 2014.

MARY SCOTVOLD: She was a beautiful skater, but she was a really superior athlete. She jumped so easily that it didn't look difficult when she did it.

Kerrigan fit the ice princess mold: graceful, stylish, and feminine.

She finally stepped back on the ice after four weeks of physical therapy.

Meanwhile, Detroit police investigators zeroed in on a suspect in the attack: a friend of Harding’s husband, Jeff Gillooly. After some digging, they implicated Gillooly, too.

Harding denied any prior knowledge, but when police questioned her, she said after the attack, she overheard some odd things from Gillooly.

She talked to ESPN in The Price of Gold.

HARDING: I was scared to death. Jeff told me he's going to kill me if I ever open my mouth about anything.

Police arrested Gillooly and Harding broke off her relationship with him.

Then, the Olympic committee kicked her off the team.

HARDING: So I then said, ‘Okay, you know what? With my attorney, I'm gonna sue you for $10 million,’ because I earned the right to skate on that Olympic team.

The committee reconsidered, and in February 1994, Harding and Kerrigan took to the ice in Norway.

AUDIO: [KERRIGAN’S ROUTINE]

Kerrigan’s routine went off without a hitch. Then it was Harding’s turn.

ANNOUNCER: I think they just gave her a two minute warning, a two minute call.

The announcer called Harding’s name.

NEWSREEL: And Tonya Harding, after the warm up, had a problem with her laces. It is her turn to be on the ice right now. This is the young lady who had a problem with her costume at the US Nationals a year ago. She had a skate blade break at a Skate America competition in October.

Over a minute passed before she finally rushed past cameras and onto the ice.

HARDING: It’s not gonna hold me.

NEWSREEL: She'll skate to the music of Jurassic Park. 

The first big jump in her program was supposed to be a triple lutz.

NEWSREEL: She had problems with this in the technical program. Reaches back with her right foot. Single.

In tears, she skated over to the judges and showed them her skate. Then rushed off the ice.

The judges allowed an equipment change, but her focus was gone.

NEWSREEL, REPORTER: Tonya, what happened, babe? / Tonya, tell us what happened.

HARDING: My lace broke on my boot, and we tried to put it back together and the lace was too small, and I went out and just couldn't do it.

Kerrigan took silver. Harding got tenth.

Kerrigan went on to win brand deals, and coaching and ice show opportunities.

Harding was convicted of hindering the investigation into the attack and received a fine and community service. 

The U.S. Figure Skating Association banned her for life.

HARDING: That was pretty much the worst thing that could ever happen to me, because I didn't have any other source of where I could go, what I could do.

She tried boxing, car repair, and landscaping. None of it ever fit like figure skating did.

Now, she’s re-married and has a son. She’s told her story to the media often. 

Kerrigan, meanwhile, has stayed out of that limelight and is still skating.

HARDING: Everybody that out there, that truly knows me, knows that I was not involved ...in any of the planning or anything.

That’s this week’s History Book, I’m Mary Muncy.

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