Tonya Harding Joins X, Acts Like Nothing Happened

Remember Tonya Harding?

Figure skater, allegedly was involved in a conspiracy to “knee cap” Nancy Kerrigan because Nancy Kerrigan was better than her so if you can’t beat ’em, beat ’em with a collapsible baton right? Isn’t that how the saying goes?

Well, Tonya is back and she’s on X now!

And, let’s just say, time has not been easy on her:

Hi everyone! I've finally figured out how to make an account on here!!

I'm very excited to reconnect with you all
(if anyone remembers me) 😄

With love,
Tonya pic.twitter.com/lfhiwdeYbY

— Tonya Harding (@itstonyaharding) January 29, 2025

Glad you finally figured out how to make an account in 2025 Tonya, it sure is tricky!

Also, hilarious that you’re just moving on like nothing happened….let’s see, 1994, flash forward to 2025, that’s 31 years, that should be enough to pop up again right?  (Allllegedly….)

Yes folks, she’s back and she’s just “blown away by all the support” she’s getting:

I'm absolutely BLOWN AWAY by the amount of love and support I've received since I joined X last night!

I love you all so much

xoxo

— Tonya Harding (@itstonyaharding) January 30, 2025

I know for sure my life was not complete until I could finally hear from Tonya Harding again now that she’s on X!

Harding says she will never forget this great moment:

This video is from the 1991 U.S. Nationals where I landed my first triple axel.

I’ll NEVER forget this moment!

It brings back so many great memories. pic.twitter.com/eGYXITkoh8

— Tonya Harding (@itstonyaharding) January 31, 2025

And I will never forget Nancy Kerrigan’s knee cap from getting busted in.

But for the record, Harding vehemently denies that she had anything to do with that, although she did plead guilty to conspiracy to hinder the investigation:

No. Tonya Harding did not personally strike or “knee cap” Nancy Kerrigan. The actual physical attack on Kerrigan occurred on January 6, 1994, at a practice rink in Detroit. A man named Shane Stant used a police baton (sometimes described as a collapsible baton) to hit Kerrigan’s right leg just above the knee.

Here are the key points to keep in mind:

1. The Attacker
   • Shane Stant was hired by Tonya Harding’s ex-husband Jeff Gillooly and Shawn Eckardt. Stant was the one who carried out the assault.
2. Tonya Harding’s Legal Outcome
   • Although Harding has long denied that she was directly involved in planning the attack, she eventually pleaded guilty to conspiracy to hinder the investigation into Kerrigan’s assault.
   • Harding received probation, community service, and a significant fine.
   • The United States Figure Skating Association (USFSA) also banned her for life from participating in USFSA-sanctioned events.
3. Nancy Kerrigan’s Injury
   • Kerrigan was bruised but avoided long-term damage to her leg. She managed to recover quickly enough to win the silver medal at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics.

Because of its sensational nature, the story is often reduced to the incorrect shorthand of “Tonya Harding hit Nancy Kerrigan.” In reality, Harding did not physically attack Kerrigan herself; however, her involvement in the larger conspiracy (and subsequent guilty plea to hindering prosecution) remains a key part of the scandal.

I hope that helps clear things up!

Now here’s where it gets kind of weird…

And I’m not searching out some grand conspiracy theory here, I’m just reporting.

No less than 12 hours after Tonya Harding joins X, the American Airlines plane carrying the figure skating team goes down:

Wait a minute. 𝐓𝐨𝐧𝐲𝐚 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 joins X, and it just so happens that her first post is 12 hours before the collision between flight 5342 and the military Black Hawk that 𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐬𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐟𝐢𝐠𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐤𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 😳 pic.twitter.com/xYjEgkyR50

— 𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐃.𝐀𝐕™ (@Zen232) January 30, 2025

You can’t make this stuff up.

Here was Nancy Kerrigan’s reaction:

So yesterday former figure skater Tonya Harding makes an announcement on X that she has opened an account. Now the skater she had allegedly assaulted back in 1994 Nancy Kerrigan is speaking today at the Skating Club of Boston, whose members allegedly died in the DC plane crash… pic.twitter.com/AisUHXQph4

— Vision4theBlind (@Vision4theBlind) January 30, 2025

Wow, it’s 2025 and here I am covering Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding.

It feels like the 1990s all over again and I love it!

From Fox News:

Tonya Harding-Nancy Kerrigan scandal
While preparing to compete in the 1994 Winter Olympics, figure skater Kerrigan was attacked and struck in the knee with a baton, rendering her unable to participate in the U.S. Figure Skating Championships.

Investigators eventually found that Kerrigan had been attacked by a man named Shane Stant. Stant carried out the attack on Kerrigan, but Harding’s ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly, her bodyguard, Brian Sean Griffith, and Derrick Smith, an associate of Shawn Eckhardt (another one of Harding’s bodyguards), together planned the attack.

Harding, Kerrigan’s competitor, vehemently denied having any knowledge of the plan before it was carried out. Still, she later pleaded guilty to conspiracy to hinder the prosecution, charged for not coming forward with knowledge about the planned attack.

Harding was sentenced to three years of probation and 500 hours of community service. She was also ordered to pay a fine of $160,000 and she was banned from the U.S. Figure Skating Association.

Where is Tonya Harding now?
Harding, now 53, struggled after being banned from skating. According to People, she was arrested twice — once for a DUI — and released a sex tape with Gillooly, her ex-husband, in the years following her criminal case.

In 2002, she appeared on FOX’s Celebrity Boxing and sparred with Paula Jones, the Arkansas woman who sued former President Bill Clinton for sexual harassment.

Harding met her husband in 2010 while having drinks with a friend shortly after returning home to Washington from Los Angeles. According to The New York Times, her now husband Joe Price was on the karaoke stage singing “Great Balls of Fire.” They welcomed a baby boy in February 2011.

The release of the critically acclaimed movie “I, Tonya” in 2017 gave Harding a chance to retell her story in a different light.