Is there any figure skating rivalry more infamous than the one between Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding? At the height of their careers, Kerrigan and Harding represented two very different styles of figure skating: Kerrigan, the elegant "ice princess," and Harding, the rough-around-the-edges technical maven. Things went from scandalous to violent in early 1994 when, just a month before the Olympics, an assailant hired by Harding's ex-husband assaulted Kerrigan, clubbing her in the knee with a police baton. Harding denied knowledge of the plot but did eventually admit to being part of the cover-up.
Both women did make the Olympic team, although Kerrigan did not compete at nationals due to her injury. (Harding won the national championship.) At the Olympics, Kerrigan won silver while Harding placed eighth after several problems. Kerrigan went pro after the Games, and Harding was banned from competitive skating.
