1 00:00:00,880 --> 00:00:04,240 Speaker 1: What is it about competition? I mean, we humans can 2 00:00:04,280 --> 00:00:07,920 Speaker 1: be so incredibly competitive, and as the Winter Olympics get 3 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:11,080 Speaker 1: underway in a few weeks, we also see how competitive 4 00:00:11,160 --> 00:00:14,720 Speaker 1: nations are about their athletes as well. The most watched 5 00:00:14,720 --> 00:00:18,880 Speaker 1: sport of the Winter Games is figure skating. As beautiful 6 00:00:18,880 --> 00:00:21,479 Speaker 1: as it is behind the scenes, it has one of 7 00:00:21,520 --> 00:00:25,040 Speaker 1: the most dog eat dog dynamics of any sport. But 8 00:00:25,120 --> 00:00:28,280 Speaker 1: we all love the drama. Right, I'm Patty Steele. The 9 00:00:28,440 --> 00:00:35,080 Speaker 1: drive to win on the ice. That's next on the backstory. 10 00:00:36,159 --> 00:00:38,960 Speaker 1: We're back with the backstory. First of all, thanks to 11 00:00:39,000 --> 00:00:42,400 Speaker 1: my pal and uber skating fan Sue Aller for suggesting 12 00:00:42,440 --> 00:00:47,200 Speaker 1: this story. Ah the beauty of somebody flying across the ice, 13 00:00:47,520 --> 00:00:51,920 Speaker 1: defying gravity and making it look so effortless, But that 14 00:00:52,040 --> 00:00:57,200 Speaker 1: perfection is hard won. Figure skaters, men, women pairs spend 15 00:00:57,320 --> 00:01:00,520 Speaker 1: hours a day, month after month, for years on end 16 00:01:00,560 --> 00:01:04,000 Speaker 1: to make it look effortless. It's not unusual for them 17 00:01:04,000 --> 00:01:06,960 Speaker 1: to train a minimum of forty hours a week for 18 00:01:07,000 --> 00:01:10,160 Speaker 1: as much as fifteen years before hitting the elite level. 19 00:01:10,640 --> 00:01:13,360 Speaker 1: So whenever people want success so much, they can taste 20 00:01:13,440 --> 00:01:16,240 Speaker 1: it when they basically give up their young lives to 21 00:01:16,280 --> 00:01:19,000 Speaker 1: train for it. When their countries see them as a 22 00:01:19,040 --> 00:01:22,960 Speaker 1: symbol of their power. You can imagine there's also plenty 23 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:26,600 Speaker 1: of behind the scenes scandal. The movie I Tanya, of Course, 24 00:01:26,640 --> 00:01:29,080 Speaker 1: told the story of the lead up to the nineteen 25 00:01:29,160 --> 00:01:32,640 Speaker 1: ninety four Winter Olympics. In January of that year, as 26 00:01:32,720 --> 00:01:35,640 Speaker 1: Tanya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan were getting ready for the 27 00:01:35,720 --> 00:01:40,200 Speaker 1: US Figure Skating Championships. The next day, cohorts of Tanya's 28 00:01:40,240 --> 00:01:44,680 Speaker 1: attacked Nancy with a pipe, smashing her just above her knee. 29 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:47,240 Speaker 1: It was all in an effort to eliminate Nancy from 30 00:01:47,280 --> 00:01:50,360 Speaker 1: the Championships and the Olympics to give Tanya a better 31 00:01:50,360 --> 00:01:54,320 Speaker 1: shot at the goal. The attacks severely bruised Nancy's leg 32 00:01:54,440 --> 00:01:58,000 Speaker 1: but broke nothing, and both Tanya and Nancy were selected 33 00:01:58,040 --> 00:02:01,960 Speaker 1: for the Olympic team that year. Eventually, the attacker confessed 34 00:02:01,960 --> 00:02:05,400 Speaker 1: and implicated Tanya. While she did skate in the Olympics, 35 00:02:05,440 --> 00:02:08,799 Speaker 1: she came in eighth. She later pleaded guilty to finding 36 00:02:08,800 --> 00:02:11,880 Speaker 1: out about the attack afterwards and helping cover it up. 37 00:02:12,400 --> 00:02:16,240 Speaker 1: There were further investigations that show she probably knew about 38 00:02:16,240 --> 00:02:19,080 Speaker 1: the attack ahead of time and even helped finance it, 39 00:02:19,400 --> 00:02:22,919 Speaker 1: but her plea deal protected her from facing any other charges. 40 00:02:23,400 --> 00:02:26,640 Speaker 1: She was banned from skating and coaching for life. But 41 00:02:26,680 --> 00:02:29,679 Speaker 1: there was another scandal on ice a few years earlier, 42 00:02:30,240 --> 00:02:34,440 Speaker 1: it seems Russia. Previously, the Soviet Union has regularly been 43 00:02:34,480 --> 00:02:37,440 Speaker 1: at the heart of the competitive drive to win when 44 00:02:37,440 --> 00:02:40,200 Speaker 1: it comes to figure skating, as well at the center 45 00:02:40,280 --> 00:02:43,400 Speaker 1: of some major scandals. They've been charged with doping their 46 00:02:43,440 --> 00:02:46,920 Speaker 1: athletes a number of times. Let's go back to nineteen 47 00:02:46,960 --> 00:02:50,360 Speaker 1: eighty eight and the Winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada for 48 00:02:50,440 --> 00:02:54,080 Speaker 1: a story of heartbreak and scandal. Here's the thing. The 49 00:02:54,160 --> 00:02:58,720 Speaker 1: Olympics likes to sell a simple story, the best athlete wins, 50 00:02:59,160 --> 00:03:02,079 Speaker 1: but sometimes that's a little bit of a lie. It's 51 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:06,200 Speaker 1: way more complicated than that. In Calgary, the women's figure 52 00:03:06,200 --> 00:03:09,360 Speaker 1: skating final was not just a competition. It was a 53 00:03:09,360 --> 00:03:14,280 Speaker 1: collision of dreams, pressure, and invisible lines of power. Three 54 00:03:14,320 --> 00:03:17,320 Speaker 1: women stepped onto the ice with everything to gain but 55 00:03:17,360 --> 00:03:22,080 Speaker 1: also everything to lose. Canada's Elizabeth Manley, Debbie Thomas from 56 00:03:22,120 --> 00:03:25,679 Speaker 1: the United States, and Katerina Vitt from East Germany part 57 00:03:25,720 --> 00:03:29,680 Speaker 1: of the USSR. We'll start with Debbie Thomas. She wasn't 58 00:03:29,720 --> 00:03:32,840 Speaker 1: just skating for a medal, she was skating for representation, 59 00:03:33,400 --> 00:03:35,640 Speaker 1: and she carried the added weight of being the first 60 00:03:35,680 --> 00:03:39,120 Speaker 1: black woman in a sport that had rarely allowed women 61 00:03:39,160 --> 00:03:42,160 Speaker 1: of color in. But she was a two time US 62 00:03:42,280 --> 00:03:46,880 Speaker 1: national champ. Her athletic excellence was unmatched, and the battle 63 00:03:46,880 --> 00:03:49,840 Speaker 1: for the gold was considered a toss up between Debbie 64 00:03:49,840 --> 00:03:54,160 Speaker 1: and Caterineavit. Debbie also carried into the competition her Ivy 65 00:03:54,280 --> 00:03:57,320 Speaker 1: League brain. While training for the Olympics, she was in 66 00:03:57,360 --> 00:04:01,440 Speaker 1: the pre med program at Stanford. During the long skate portion, 67 00:04:01,640 --> 00:04:05,320 Speaker 1: the media hyped the competition when both Debbie and Katerina 68 00:04:05,720 --> 00:04:08,160 Speaker 1: chose to skate to the music of the opera Carmen. 69 00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:12,160 Speaker 1: Both did well, but Debbie was in elite. Going into 70 00:04:12,200 --> 00:04:15,280 Speaker 1: the free skate portion of the competition, Debbie was in 71 00:04:15,360 --> 00:04:18,280 Speaker 1: first place. She had four minutes on the ice to 72 00:04:18,360 --> 00:04:21,920 Speaker 1: prove herself. She was required to do five triples with 73 00:04:22,120 --> 00:04:26,240 Speaker 1: razor sharp perfection. She nailed the first, but wobbled the 74 00:04:26,320 --> 00:04:29,680 Speaker 1: tiniest bit on the second, and just like that, her 75 00:04:29,720 --> 00:04:34,120 Speaker 1: momentum slipped. Every triple that followed was overshadowed by that 76 00:04:34,240 --> 00:04:39,120 Speaker 1: single imperfection. She fought, she pushed, but ultimately she left 77 00:04:39,120 --> 00:04:43,359 Speaker 1: the ice with bronze. Next up came Elizabeth Manley. She 78 00:04:43,560 --> 00:04:47,359 Speaker 1: was Countada's underdog, the skater who had collapsed in training 79 00:04:47,480 --> 00:04:51,240 Speaker 1: just two months before the games from exhaustion, pain and fear. 80 00:04:51,800 --> 00:04:55,000 Speaker 1: But her fire would ignite on the ice. She skated 81 00:04:55,120 --> 00:04:58,880 Speaker 1: like somebody who had nothing to lose. Four clean triples. 82 00:04:59,120 --> 00:05:02,599 Speaker 1: She was sharp and wildly fast, with an energy that 83 00:05:02,720 --> 00:05:07,000 Speaker 1: crackled like electricity. The crowd went nuts, the judges whispered 84 00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:10,279 Speaker 1: amongst themselves, and for a moment it felt like the 85 00:05:10,360 --> 00:05:14,200 Speaker 1: impossible was going to happen, like Elizabeth had stolen history. 86 00:05:14,920 --> 00:05:18,599 Speaker 1: Then katterine A Vit glided onto the ice. She was 87 00:05:18,600 --> 00:05:23,599 Speaker 1: the defending champ, a masterpiece of East Germany's sports machine. 88 00:05:23,640 --> 00:05:27,960 Speaker 1: Every movement had been rehearsed, engineered, and polished to perfection. 89 00:05:28,839 --> 00:05:33,240 Speaker 1: Vitt's performance included five triples, but she only executed four 90 00:05:33,279 --> 00:05:36,560 Speaker 1: of them. Though she did them flawlessly, she made the 91 00:05:36,640 --> 00:05:39,799 Speaker 1: choice not to do the fifth. It wasn't about her brilliance, 92 00:05:39,920 --> 00:05:46,120 Speaker 1: but about control. No mistakes, no drama, no vulnerability. For Vitt, 93 00:05:46,160 --> 00:05:48,640 Speaker 1: a slip up on a fifth wouldn't have been just 94 00:05:48,680 --> 00:05:52,400 Speaker 1: a mistake. It would have been a political failure. East 95 00:05:52,400 --> 00:05:57,080 Speaker 1: Germany's prestige in a tricky political world rested on her shoulders. 96 00:05:57,520 --> 00:06:02,640 Speaker 1: Winning was non negotiable. Judges heavily weighted toward the Eastern 97 00:06:02,680 --> 00:06:07,720 Speaker 1: Soviet Bloc came to any inevitable conclusion. Even though Elizabeth 98 00:06:07,760 --> 00:06:12,360 Speaker 1: Manning was technically superior, the gold went to Katerinavitt and 99 00:06:12,400 --> 00:06:16,039 Speaker 1: the silver to Elizabeth Manley. So it wasn't about who 100 00:06:16,120 --> 00:06:19,919 Speaker 1: was best, but who was protected by the system. What 101 00:06:20,040 --> 00:06:22,599 Speaker 1: if the post Olympic gears looked like for these women? 102 00:06:23,160 --> 00:06:26,440 Speaker 1: A Katerine Avitt continued to skate as an amateur and 103 00:06:26,520 --> 00:06:30,400 Speaker 1: later on the pro circuit. She wrote an autobiography. She's 104 00:06:30,480 --> 00:06:33,599 Speaker 1: acted in a number of TV shows and films, and 105 00:06:33,640 --> 00:06:37,200 Speaker 1: in nineteen ninety eight she posed nude in Playboy magazine, 106 00:06:37,480 --> 00:06:40,520 Speaker 1: leading to a sellout of that issue. She wanted to 107 00:06:40,600 --> 00:06:45,200 Speaker 1: prove that skaters were not just little ice princesses. Elizabeth 108 00:06:45,240 --> 00:06:48,839 Speaker 1: Manley's exquisite performance and her silver medal made her a 109 00:06:48,920 --> 00:06:52,640 Speaker 1: national hero in Canada. She went on to skate professionally 110 00:06:53,000 --> 00:06:55,360 Speaker 1: and is now a figure skating coach as well as 111 00:06:55,360 --> 00:06:59,680 Speaker 1: a spokesperson for Mental health Awareness. Having suffered from depression 112 00:06:59,720 --> 00:07:04,240 Speaker 1: from many years and Debbie Thomas's life post Olympics has 113 00:07:04,360 --> 00:07:07,960 Speaker 1: run an unimaginable gamut. Maybe worthy of a movie. I 114 00:07:08,000 --> 00:07:12,520 Speaker 1: think this brilliant and gifted woman graduated from Stanford with 115 00:07:12,600 --> 00:07:16,640 Speaker 1: an engineering degree and went on to medical school, ultimately 116 00:07:16,720 --> 00:07:21,160 Speaker 1: becoming an orthopedic surgeon. She was married twice, including once 117 00:07:21,200 --> 00:07:23,480 Speaker 1: to a sports attorney with whom she had a son, 118 00:07:24,240 --> 00:07:28,320 Speaker 1: but an ongoing battle with bipolar disorder eventually destroyed her 119 00:07:28,360 --> 00:07:32,120 Speaker 1: career and her personal life. In twenty fifteen, she was 120 00:07:32,200 --> 00:07:36,240 Speaker 1: living in a bedbug infested trailer with fiance who was 121 00:07:36,280 --> 00:07:40,160 Speaker 1: an alcoholic with anger issues. She had lost custody of 122 00:07:40,200 --> 00:07:42,320 Speaker 1: her son, and she said she had lost all of 123 00:07:42,360 --> 00:07:45,480 Speaker 1: her money. Now, on a brighter note, she's now living 124 00:07:45,600 --> 00:07:48,320 Speaker 1: and training in Florida, and she hopes to get back 125 00:07:48,360 --> 00:07:53,080 Speaker 1: into the skating world in some way. So determination, brilliance, 126 00:07:53,120 --> 00:07:57,560 Speaker 1: and breathtaking talent doesn't always protect you from life's difficulties, 127 00:07:58,120 --> 00:08:01,040 Speaker 1: and what goes on behind the scenes can be way 128 00:08:01,040 --> 00:08:04,080 Speaker 1: more complex than what we see on our TV screens. 129 00:08:04,920 --> 00:08:08,360 Speaker 1: Thanks again to my pal in major Skating Van, Sue Aller, 130 00:08:08,480 --> 00:08:11,800 Speaker 1: for suggesting this story. I hope you're enjoying the backstory 131 00:08:11,840 --> 00:08:15,080 Speaker 1: with Patty Steele. Please leave a review and follow or 132 00:08:15,120 --> 00:08:19,320 Speaker 1: subscribe for free to get new episodes delivered automatically. Also 133 00:08:19,400 --> 00:08:21,880 Speaker 1: feel free to DM me if, like Sue, you have 134 00:08:21,920 --> 00:08:24,320 Speaker 1: a story you'd like me to cover. On Facebook, It's 135 00:08:24,440 --> 00:08:35,280 Speaker 1: Patty Steele and on Instagram Real Patty Steele. I'm Patty Steele. 136 00:08:35,520 --> 00:08:39,800 Speaker 1: The Backstories a production of iHeartMedia, Premiere Networks, the Elvis 137 00:08:39,840 --> 00:08:44,000 Speaker 1: Duran Group, and Steel Trap Productions. Our producer is Doug Fraser. 138 00:08:44,240 --> 00:08:47,920 Speaker 1: Our writer Jake Kushner. We have new episodes every Tuesday 139 00:08:47,920 --> 00:08:50,440 Speaker 1: and Friday. Feel free to reach out to me with 140 00:08:50,559 --> 00:08:54,480 Speaker 1: comments and even story suggestions on Instagram at Real Patty 141 00:08:54,559 --> 00:08:57,960 Speaker 1: Steele and on Facebook at Patty Steele. Thanks for listening 142 00:08:58,040 --> 00:09:01,280 Speaker 1: to the Backstory with Patty Steele, the pieces of history 143 00:09:01,480 --> 00:09:03,160 Speaker 1: you didn't know you needed to know.