4. The Whack Heard ‘Round the World
Here’s more figure skating. In 1994, world’s eyes were set upon scandal at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Detroit. Nancy Kerrigan was clubbed to the knee, but luckily only ended with a sore. It turned out that the attack was instigated by Tonya Harding’s ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly, and her bodyguard, Shawn Eckardt. And who was Tonya Harding? Of course, she was Kerrigan’s strongest rival. The attack was carried out by Shane Stant, who, as we know, failed to inflict any serious damage to Kerrigan’s knee – though she was still forced to withdraw from the national championship. In the end, Kerrigan managed to come second in Lillehammer, in 1994, while Harding finished eighth. In the aftermath, Harding got a lifetime ban from professional skating and all the men involved were prison sentenced.
