AP Photo/Larry Salzman
Riveting rivalries
Tonya Harding vs.
Nancy Kerrigan
The women's figure skating short program at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer is one of the 10 highest-rated events in U.S. television history. Despite an eight-hour tape delay, 120 million-plus people tuned in. And it was all about Tonya and Nancy, whose rink rivalry was a real-life soap opera. In 1991, Harding (left in photo, with Kerrigan) won the U.S. title and a silver at the world championships; Kerrigan earned Olympic bronze at the 1992 Albertville Games and the U.S. title the following year. But that was all just table-setting. After a training session at the 1994 nationals, a masked man whacked Kerrigan's knee with a metal baton. Her withdrawal cleared the way for Harding to take the crown. Although the attack was orchestrated by Harding's ex-husband, she claimed ignorance of the crime and was allowed to compete in Lillehammer. There, Kerrigan got the last laugh, winning the silver medal while Harding -- flustered by a shoelace malfunction -- finished eighth.
