Nancy Kerrigan-Tonya Harding scandal turns 20 years old

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 1:52 p.m. ET

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Sam Gardner

On Jan. 6, 1994, Shane Stant attacked Nancy Kerrigan on the eve of the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Detroit, taking a baton to Kerrigan’s right leg after she completed a practice round at Cobo Arena.

The ensuing investigation into the assault would lead police to a man named Jeff Gillooly, the ex-husband of Kerrigan’s rival Tonya Harding, and Harding’s bodyguard, Shawn Eckardt.

The footage of the aftermath of the attack would become one of the most chilling pieces of video many have ever seen, and Kerrigan’s injuries would keep her out of the U.S. Championships. But Kerrigan returned to the ice in February for the Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway, where she won the silver medal.

The aftermath didn’t play out quite so positively, however, for Harding, who finished eighth in the ‘92 Olympics and later pled guilty to hindering the prosecution of Kerrigan’s attackers — though she still maintains that she had no knowledge of the attack.

The two decades since have been forgettable for Harding, who found herself involved in several other run-ins with the law, hocked a sex tape with Gillooly and embarked on a career as a boxer over the years:

But rather than focus on Harding’s downhill slide, let’s go back to Jan. 6, 1994, and see what else was going on in the world at the time of one of the most infamous attacks in sports history:

• Jameis Winston was born in Hueytown, Ala.

• Winston’s future team, Florida State was celebrating a national championship earned five days earlier with an Orange Bowl win over Nebraska. Auburn finished the 1993-94 season undefeated, but a postseason ban kept them from participating in the SEC Championship or a bowl game.

• Mrs. Doubtfire was the No. 1 movie at the box office:

• Mariah Carey's "Hero" was in the midst of a four-week stay atop the Billboard Hot 100:

• The original Charlotte Hornets still existed, and they started this pint-sized guard in a loss to the Portland Trail Blazers:

• Gas cost 99 cents per gallon

• The Dow Jones hit a record high — of $3,803.88

• The world anxiously awaited the start of the Lorena Bobbitt trial

• The North American Free Trade Agreement had just gone into effect, signed into law by President Bill Clinton

• Sadly, Clinton’s mother, Virginia Clinton Kelley, died Jan. 6, 1994

• Fresh off of a win over the Colts in the final week of the regular season, the Buffalo Bills prepared for a divisional round matchup against the Los Angeles Raiders; a few weeks later, the Bills would lose their fourth straight Super Bowl:

• Home Improvement was the most watched show on television, and the night before the Kerrigan attack, millions tuned into this episode on ABC:

• First-person shooter games looked like this — and we loved them:

Ah, the good old days.

Now, for some links:

• Rihanna featured Mychal Kendricks in a “Man Crush Monday” post on Instagram. For his part, Kendricks didn’t want to talk about it.

• South Korean hockey player Hwangbo Young escaped North Korea as a teenager.

• Here’s LeBron James firing a machine gun:

• A Northwestern freshman became the first player to wear a yarmulke during a B1G basketball game.

• No surprise here — the Texas Longhorns are the most valuable program in college football.

• Iowa coach Fran McCaffery was ejected after bumping an official during his team’s game against Wisconsin:

• Kobe Bryant thinks fans should vote younger, more deserving stars into the NBA All-Star Game.

• Carmelo Anthony called Clippers trade rumors silly and stupid.

• Rory McIlroy and Will Smith, BFFLs:

• Check out the roster for Dennis Rodman’s “basketball diplomacy” scrimmage in North Korea.

• The Auburn campus was hit with FSU graffiti.

• This photo from some guy on a plane has people thinking Tony Dungy could be interested in coaching the Detroit Lions:

• The Spokane Indians went out of their way to honor their namesake in the team’s logo.

• The Packers drew a record crowd at Lambeau on Sunday, despite bone-chilling temperatures.

• Jerry Lawler is quite the artist:

• Mario Williams and his ex-fiancee have reached a settlement over an incredibly expensive engagement ring.

• Cam Newton is getting trolled by his own kicker, a former Florida State Seminole:

• Phil Mickelson helped the Chargers celebrate their playoff win in Cincinnati:

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