The look on Tonya Harding’s face when she became the first woman to complete a triple axel in competition a few years ago was of sheer, unadulterated joy. It is by far the truest picture of happiness I’ve ever witnessed in this sport.
Figure skating has come to be dominated by frail princesses so intimidated by the thought of failure that they cannot complete a routine without crashing to the ice. Look at these skaters’ faces during competition. They are so rigid that the touch of a feather could shatter them into a million pieces.
I hope members of the U.S. Figure Skating Association and the U.S. Olympic Committee will come to their senses and allow Tonya Harding to prove her worth in Lillehammer. This young woman has spent a lifetime working for this opportunity, which amounts to a mere 10 minutes or so on Olympic ice. But let Tonya compete, and she will bring home a gold medal that we all should be proud of.
Associating oneself with unsavory associates may be foolish, but is not a crime. Let us not make it one.
