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Tonya Price
Harding at Portland, Oregon, reception shortly after the 1994 Winter Olympics.
Full nameTonya Maxene Price
BornTonya Maxene Harding
(1970-11-12) November 12, 1970 (age 53)
Portland, Oregon, U.S.[1]
Height5 ft 1 in (1.55 m)
Figure skating career
CountryUnited States
CoachDiane Rawlinson, Dody Teachman
Medal record
Representing the USA
Ladies' Figure skating
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 1991 Munich Ladies' singles

Tonya Maxene Price known professionally as Tonya Harding[2][3] (born November 12, 1970)[4][5] is a retired American figure skater. She was the 1991 U.S. champion and 1991 World Championship silver medalist. Harding was also a two-time Olympian and a two-time Skate America Champion.[6] She was the first woman to successfully execute two triple axels in a single competition, and the first to complete a triple axel in combination with a double toe loop. In late 1993, Harding was an Olympic hopeful when she became engulfed in controversy following the attack on skating rival Nancy Kerrigan. After the games ended, she pled guilty to hindering the prosecution and was banned for life from the U.S. Figure Skating Association.[7] Harding is the subject of the 2017 movie I, Tonya.

Early life

Tonya Harding was born on November 12, 1970 in Portland, Oregon, to LaVona Golden (b. 1940)[8] and Albert Harding (1933–2009)[9]. Harding was raised in Portland and began skating at age three.[6] As a youth, Harding also hunted, drag raced, and learned automotive mechanics from her father.[10] LaVona struggled to help support the family while she worked as a waitress, and she hand-sewed Tonya's competition skating costumes.[10]

Harding had a troubled childhood. She said that by the time she was seven years old, her mother had mentally and physically abused her.[11][12] LaVona admitted to one instance of hitting Tonya at an ice rink.[11] Tonya dropped out of Milwaukie High School[13] during her sophomore year in order to focus on skating; she later earned a General Educational Development.[14]

Skating career

In the mid-1980s, Harding began working her way up the competitive skating ladder. She placed sixth at the 1986 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, fifth in 1987 and 1988, and third in 1989. After winning Skate America in 1989, she was considered a strong contender at the 1990 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, but she was suffering from the flu and asthma and had a poor free skate. After the original program, she dropped from second place and finished seventh overall. She was a powerful free skater and typically had lower placements in the compulsory figures.

Harding's breakthrough year came in 1991, when she landed her first triple axel at the U.S. Championships[6] and won the title with the event's first 6.0 ever given to a single female skater for technical merit. At the 1991 World Championships, she again completed the triple axel—becoming the first American woman to perform it at an international event. Harding would finish second behind Kristi Yamaguchi, and in front of Nancy Kerrigan, marking the first time one country swept the ladies medal podium at the World Figure Skating Championships.

At the Fall 1991 Skate America, Harding recorded three more firsts:

  • The first woman to complete a triple axel in the short program;
  • The first woman to successfully execute two triple axels in a single competition;
  • The first ever to complete a triple axel combination with the double toe loop.

Despite these record-breaking performances, she was never able to successfully perform the triple axel in a competition after 1991, and her competitive results began to decline as a result. In 1992, she placed third in the U.S. Championships after twisting her ankle in practice. She finished fourth in the 1992 Winter Olympics, and in the 1992 World Championships, she placed sixth. In the 1993 season, she skated poorly in the U.S. Championships and failed to qualify for the World Championship team.

Following legal controversy, Harding was permitted to remain a member of the U.S. ice skating team at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway.[15] After a problem with her laces, she was given a re-skate in the long program and finished in eighth place, far behind Oksana Baiul (gold) and Nancy Kerrigan (silver).

Figure skating record

International
Event[16] 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94
Winter Olympics 4th 8th
World Championships 2nd 6th
Skate America 2nd 1st 1st 3rd
Skate Canada International 4th
Nations Cup 1st
NHK Trophy 3rd 2nd 4th
U.S. Olympic Festival 2nd
Prize of Moscow News[17] 1st
National
U.S. Championships[18][citation needed] 6th 5th 5th 3rd 7th 1st 3rd 4th 1st

^† In June 1994, Claire Ferguson—the President of the U.S. Figure Skating Association—voted to strip Harding of her 1994 title. However, the competition results were not changed and the title was left vacant rather than moving all the other competitors up one position.[19][20]

Attack on Nancy Kerrigan and aftermath

Harding's practice sessions at Clackamas Town Center, in preparation for the 1994 Winter Olympics, were attended by thousands of spectators and dozens of reporters and film crews.

On January 6, 1994 (1994-01-06), Harding's main team competitor Nancy Kerrigan was attacked by an assailant later identified as Shane Stant after a practice session at the 1994 U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Detroit. Harding's ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly (1967–)[21], and her bodyguard, Shawn Eckhardt,[22] hired Stant to break Kerrigan's right leg so that she would be unable to compete at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer. After failing to find Kerrigan at her training rink in Massachusetts, Stant followed her to Detroit. When she stepped off the ice after a practice session at Cobo Arena and walked behind a nearby curtain into a corridor, Stant struck her leg about 1 inch (3 cm) above the knee[23] with a 21-inch (53 cm) ASP telescopic baton.[24] Her leg was only bruised, not broken, but the injury forced her to withdraw from the national championship. Harding won that event, and she and Kerrigan were both selected for the 1994 Olympic team.[15] Harding finished eighth in Lillehammer, while Kerrigan, by then recovered from the injury, won the silver medal behind Oksana Baiul from Ukraine.[25]

The attack on Kerrigan and the news of Harding's alleged involvement led to a media frenzy. Kerrigan appeared on the cover of both TIME and Newsweek magazines in January 1994. Reporters and TV news crews attended Harding's practices in Portland and camped out in front of Kerrigan's home. CBS assigned Connie Chung to follow her every move in Lillehammer. Four hundred members of the press jammed into the practice rink in Norway. Scott Hamilton complained that "the world press was turning the Olympics into just another sensational tabloid event."[26] The tape-delayed broadcast of the women's short program at the Olympics remains one of the most watched telecasts in American history.[27]

On February 1, 1994, Gillooly accepted a plea offer in exchange for his testimony against Harding. Gillooly, Stant, Eckhardt, and getaway car driver Derrick Smith all served time in prison for the attack.[28] Eckhardt was sentenced to 18 months in prison for racketeering but was released four months early in September 1995.[22]

Harding arriving at Portland International Airport amid a crush of reporters after the 1994 Olympics

Harding avoided further prosecution and a possible jail sentence by pleading guilty on March 16 to conspiring to hinder prosecution of the attackers.[29] She received three years' probation, 500 hours of community service, and a $160,000 fine. As part of the plea bargain, she was also forced to withdraw from the 1994 World Figure Skating Championships and resign from the United States Figure Skating Association.[30] The USFSA conducted its own investigation of the attack. On June 30, 1994, the association stripped her of her 1994 U.S. Championships title and banned her for life from participating in USFSA-run events as either a skater or a coach.[20] The USFSA concluded that she knew about the attack before it happened and displayed "a clear disregard for fairness, good sportsmanship, and ethical behavior". Although the USFSA has no control over non-competitive professional skating events, she was also persona non grata on the pro circuit because few skaters and promoters would work with her. Consequently, she failed to benefit from the boom in professional skating that ensued in the aftermath of the scandal.[26]

In her 2008 autobiography, The Tonya Tapes, Harding stated that she wanted to call the FBI to reveal what she knew, but decided not to when Gillooly allegedly threatened her with death following a gunpoint gang rape by him and two other men she did not know. He subsequently changed his name to Jeff Stone and called the accusations of gang rape "utterly ridiculous."[12] Eckhardt, who legally changed his name to Brian Sean Griffith following his release from jail, died at age 40 on December 12, 2007.[22]

Later celebrity

Harding had a celebrity sex tape: an explicit "Wedding Video" showed her having sex with her then-husband, Jeff Gillooly. Gillooly had sold the tape to a tabloid TV show after being implicated as a conspirator in the Kerrigan attack. Stills from the tape were published by Penthouse in September 1994 and the tape itself[31] was released at about the same time.

Harding in 2006

On June 22, 1994, in Portland, Oregon, Harding appeared on an AAA professional wrestling show as the manager for wrestling stable Los Gringos Locos. The night's performance included Art Barr, Eddie Guerrero, and Brian Cox.[32]

A promotional musical event was unsuccessful when Harding and her band, the Golden Blades, were booed off the stage in their only performance, in 1995 in Portland, Oregon.[33][34]

In 1994 Harding was cast in a low-budget action film, Breakaway.[35] The film was released in 1996.[36]

In late 1996 she used mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to help revive an 81-year-old woman, Alice Olson, who collapsed at a bar in Portland while playing video poker.[37]

In March 2008 she became a commentator for TruTV's The Smoking Gun Presents: World's Dumbest....[38]

Boxing career

Tonya Harding
Born
Tonya Maxene Harding
NationalityAmerican
Other namesBad Girl
Statistics
Weight(s)Lightweight
Height5 ft 1 in (1.55 m)
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights6
Wins3
Wins by KO0
Losses3

In 2002 she boxed against Paula Jones on the Fox TV network Celebrity Boxing event, winning the fight. On February 22, 2003, she made her official women's professional boxing debut, losing a four-round decision in the undercard of the Mike Tyson-Clifford Etienne bout, amid rumors that she was having financial difficulties and needed to fight in the ring to earn money.[39] She did another celebrity boxing match, on The Man Show, and won against co-host Doug Stanhope. Stanhope later claimed on his podcast that the fight was fixed because Tonya Harding refused to "fight a man".[40]

On March 23, 2004, it was reported that she canceled a planned boxing match against Tracy Carlton in Oakland, California, because of an alleged death threat against her.[41]

On June 24, 2004, after reportedly not having boxed for over a year, she was beaten in a match in Edmonton, Alberta, by Amy Johnson. Fans reportedly booed her as she entered the ring and cheered wildly for Johnson when she won in the third round.[42][43]

Her boxing career was cut short by a physical condition that she attributed to asthma.[44] Her overall record was 3 wins and 3 losses. [45]

Professional record

3 Wins (3 decisions), 3 Losses (2 knockouts, 1 decision), 0 Draws[46]
Date Opponent Result Type Round, Time Location
2004-06-25 Amy Johnson Loss TKO 3 (4), 1:04 Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
2003-08-02 Melissa Yanas Loss TKO 1 (4), 1:13 Dallas, Texas, U.S.
2003-06-13 Emily Gosa Win Decision (unanimous) 4 (4) Lincoln City, Oregon, U.S.
2003-03-28 Alejandra Lopez Win Decision (unanimous) 4 (4) Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S.
2003-03-15 Shannon Birmingham Win Decision (unanimous) 4 (4) Gulfport, Mississippi, U.S.
2003-02-22 Samantha Browning Loss Decision (split) 4 (4) Los Angeles, California, U.S.

Automobile racing land speed record

On August 12, 2010 Harding set a new land speed record for a vintage gas coupe with a speed of 97.177 mph driving a 1931 Ford Model A, named Lickity-Split, on the Bonneville Salt Flats.[47][48]

Personal life

Harding married Jeff Gillooly in 1990,[6] when she was 19 years old. Their tumultuous marriage ended in divorce in 1993, but they continued seeing each other heading into the 1994 Winter Olympics.[49] She married her second husband, Michael Smith, in 1995; the couple divorced in 1996.[50] She married 42-year-old Joseph Price on June 23, 2010, when she was 39 years old and now prefers to go by her married name of Tonya Price.[2][51] She gave birth to her only child, a son named Gordon, on February 19, 2011.[52]

The notes at the end of the movie I, Tonya give information about Harding's life in the year 2017. According to this information, Harding does landscaping, deck building, and house painting.[citation needed]

Harding and her role in the Kerrigan attack have been widely referenced in sitcom episodes, music videos, and a primary campaign speech by former President Barack Obama.[53]

In 2014, Matt Harkins and Viviana Olen created the Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding Museum in their Brooklyn, New York apartment.[54]

Film

Television

  • In 2014, ESPN aired a 30 for 30 documentary on the Kerrigan attack called The Price of Gold.[58]
  • During the 1993 to 1994 Season of In Living Color, sketch actress Alexandra Wentworth played Tonya in a number of sketches. [59]
  • In an episode of the television program Seinfeld called "The Understudy," when Jerry’s girlfriend, a Broadway performer, takes the stage, she has a problem with the laces on her boot and, in an act reminiscent of Harding's bootlace incident, tearfully asks that she be allowed to start over. Additionally, Jerry’s girlfriend was the understudy on the show and only got to perform because the lead actress suffered an injury that everyone claims was caused by a hitman, George.[60][61]
  • A 1999 episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000 featured the movie Soultaker. The star/writer of the movie, Vivian Schilling, was the target of numerous Tonya Harding references in the MST3k episode due to their physical resemblance.[62]

Music and opera

Print

  • The book Women on Ice: Feminist Essays on the Tonya Harding/Nancy Kerrigan Spectacle (1995) included a number of essays analyzing her public image in the context of the sport of figure skating.[68]

References

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  2. ^ a b Brodesser-Akner, Taffy (January 10, 2018). "Tonya Harding Would Like Her Apology Now". New York Times. Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  3. ^ Janofsky, Michael (February 7, 1994). "Winter Olympics; Always Tonya: As Cool as Ice But Troubled". The New York Times.
  4. ^ "Tonya Harding Biography: Ice Skater, Athlete (1970–)". Biography.com (FYI / A&E Networks). Retrieved March 22, 2016.
  5. ^ Brownstone, David M.; Franck, Irene (1995). People in the News, 1995. Macmillan Reference USA. p. 155. ISBN 0-02-897058-6.
  6. ^ a b c d Janofsky, Michael (March 12, 1991). "A Triple Axel With Rippling Effects". The New York Times.
  7. ^ Marshall, Sarah. Remote Control, The Believer, January 2013.
  8. ^ https://www.uselessdaily.com/news/tonya-harding-50-things-you-didnt-know-about-the-skating-champion/#.Wli4ZqinG70
  9. ^ "Albert Gordon Harding".
  10. ^ a b Smith, Lissa, ed. (1999). Nike is a Goddess: The History of Women in Sports. Atlantic Monthly Press. pp. 172–3. ISBN 978-0-87113-761-6.
  11. ^ a b "Tonya Harding's Skating Scandal". Oprah.com. Retrieved November 28, 2016.
  12. ^ a b Tonya Harding reveals her side of roller-coaster life Today Show May 15, 2008.
  13. ^ BARTELS, ERIC. "Tonya and Nancy: The Rock Opera • Soap on ice". https://joomlakave.com. Retrieved December 21, 2017. {{cite news}}: External link in |work= (help)
  14. ^ Saari, Peggy (1998). Great Misadventures: Bad Ideas That Led to Big Disasters. Thomson Gale. p. 697. ISBN 0-7876-2799-2.
  15. ^ a b "Skater Nancy Kerrigan Assaulted". MassMoments.org. Retrieved April 14, 2009.
  16. ^ "Skate Canada Results Book Volume 2: 1974–current" (PDF). Skate Canada. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 20, 2009. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
  17. ^ "Prize of Moscow News". Pirouette.
  18. ^ "US National Ladies' freeskating final standings 1991–1993". Skate Central. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
  19. ^ Skating magazine, August 1994
  20. ^ a b "U.S. Title Is Taken Back From Harding". The New York Times. Associated Press. July 1, 1994. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
  21. ^ https://www.geni.com/people/Jeff-Gillooly/6000000024988211583
  22. ^ a b c "Player in attack on Kerrigan dies at 40". Yahoo News. December 15, 2007. Archived from the original on December 18, 2007. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  23. ^ Crossman, Matt (2013-12-19). Harding-Kerrigan 20 Years Later: Remembering the Stunning, Life-Changing Attack. Bleacher Report, 19 December 2013. Retrieved from http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1887592-harding-kerrigan-20-years-later-remembering-the-stunning-life-changing-attack.
  24. ^ Swift, E. M. (February 14, 1994). "Anatomy of a Plot". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 28, 2016. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  25. ^ Harvey, Randy (February 26, 1994). "Baiul Wins Gold; Kerrigan Takes Silver : Olympics: Figure skating events wind up--in more controversy". Los Angeles Times. Hamar, Norway. Retrieved December 31, 2017.
  26. ^ a b Hamilton, Scott; Benet, Lorenzo (1999). Landing It: My life on and off the ice. New York: Kensington Books. ISBN 1-57566-466-6.
  27. ^ Nielsen Media Research (August 6, 2000). "Top 100 TV Shows of All Time". Variety. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  28. ^ "Kerrigan Attacker and Accomplice Sent to Jail". The New York Times. May 17, 1994. Retrieved November 28, 2016.
  29. ^ Longman, Jere (January 6, 1994). "Jealousy on Ice". The New York Times.
  30. ^ "The Tonya Harding–Nancy Kerrigan Saga". Washington Post. The Washington Post Company. 1998. Retrieved November 28, 2016.
  31. ^ "Tonya and Jeff's Wedding Night". August 1, 1994. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  32. ^ Guerrero, Eddie (2005). Cheating Death, Stealing Life: The Eddie Guerrero Story. Simon and Schuster. pp. 100–101. ISBN 0-7434-9353-2. Tonya Harding was actually very quiet, nice and sweet, not at all like the crowbar-swinging ho the press made her out to be. Of course, she had no idea who we were. She was just earning a paycheck, capitalizing on whatever was left of her fifteen minutes of fame.
  33. ^ "Stage Fright". People. Vol. 44, no. 12. Time, Inc. September 18, 1995. Retrieved April 19, 2013. When disgraced Olympic skater Tonya Harding took to the stage in Portland, Ore., earlier this month under her new guise as a pop singer, she showed none of the biker-girl swagger that once so unsettled the skating world. Mostly what she and the other members of the Golden Blades felt was the derision of 10,000 raucous music festival fans, who jeered and tossed soda bottles onto the stage, forcing the Blades to beat a retreat.
  34. ^ "Tonya Harding Debuts As Singer In Portland Concert For MDA". Seattle Times. The Seattle Times Company. August 30, 1995. Retrieved April 19, 2013. Harding will appear with her band, The Golden Blades, at a concert Sunday to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. The band will perform "light pop" music, possibly including a Madonna song, according to Kellie Shipp of KKRZ-FM, the radio station that invited Harding to perform.
  35. ^ Loh, Sandra Tsing (July 23, 1994). "Look Who's Back: Movies: Tonya Harding gives acting a spin in the action film 'Breakaway,' getting raves from cast and crew". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 12, 2017.
  36. ^ Schmitz, Ashleigh (January 9, 2014). "The Tonya Harding, Nancy Kerrigan Scandal Turns 20: Is Harding a Victim, Too?". Parade. Retrieved July 12, 2017.
  37. ^ "Harding Helps to Save Woman's Life". The New York Times. Associated Press. October 29, 1996. Retrieved April 19, 2013. TONYA HARDING...was being saluted as a hero yesterday, after helping to save a woman's life Sunday night at a bar in suburban Portland, Ore., near her home. Shortly after Harding and her godmother LINDA LEWIS stopped at the Lost and Found Saloon to play video poker, ALICE OLSON, 81, collapsed and stopped breathing. Harding called 911 with her cellular phone and administered mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
  38. ^ "truTV Presents: World's Dumbest". TV.com. Retrieved November 28, 2016.
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  40. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on August 8, 2016. Retrieved June 5, 2017. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  41. ^ "Why Harding wasn't in bout / Manager cites death threats, skills of foe". SFGate.com.
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  43. ^ "Tonya Harding Gets Stopped By Amy Johnson!". boxing247.com. June 26, 2004.
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  45. ^ Tonya Harding's professional boxing record, BoxRec.com, accessed January 13, 2007.
  46. ^ [1][dead link]
  47. ^ "Wayback Machine". August 19, 2009. Archived from the original on August 19, 2009. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  48. ^ "Visitor anti-robot validation". Charliesweb.com. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
  49. ^ Tonya Harding biography at tonyaharding.com Archived May 9, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, accessed July 16, 2006.
  50. ^ "Tonya Harding". Biography. Retrieved April 6, 2017.
  51. ^ "Nation & World – ContraCostaTimes.com". January 19, 2013. Archived from the original on January 19, 2013. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  52. ^ Mike Fleeman (February 23, 2011). "Tonya Harding welcomes a son". People. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  53. ^ Lester, Paul (March 4, 2009). "Tonya Harding bitter and thankful over Obama's 'kneecap' comment". The Guardian. London. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  54. ^ 5:34 PM ET (April 19, 2015). "Like 'Dynasty' On Ice: The Nancy Kerrigan And Tonya Harding Museum". NPR. Retrieved December 28, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  55. ^ Mizoguchi, Karen (March 21, 2016). "Margot Robbie to Play Tonya Harding in Upcoming Film I, Tonya". People. Retrieved March 23, 2016.
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  57. ^ Jeffrey Hasty (October 31, 2016), Julie Brown - Attack Of the 5'2 Women, retrieved January 7, 2018
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  59. ^ http://variety.com/1994/tv/reviews/in-living-color-2-1200437294/
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  62. ^ Shypixel. "Soultaker". The Annotated MST. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
  63. ^ "Tonya & Nancy the Rock Opera".
  64. ^ "Tonya Twirls", accessed July 21, 2007.
  65. ^ Bromley, Tom (2006). We Could Have Been the Wombles: The Weird and Wonderful World of One-Hit Wonders. Penguin. p. 90. ISBN 0-14-101711-2.
  66. ^ Monroe, Jazz (December 6, 2017). "Sufjan Releases New Song "Tonya Harding": Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 10, 2017. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  67. ^ julie brown (June 24, 2009), Queen Of The Ice - Julie Brown, retrieved January 7, 2018
  68. ^ Women on Ice: Feminist Essays on the Tonya Harding/Nancy Kerrigan Spectacle. 1995. ISBN 0-415-91150-8.