Tonya Harding As A Person example essay topic

Tonya Harding is a figure skater who was once a national star. I remember that she plotted to hurt a fellow figure skater, Nancy Kerrigan, in order to better her chances of winning. I think that she is in her late 20's and that she has become a different person now. I heard that she now boxes and has now professionally entered women's boxing.

I hope that by researching Tonya Harding, I will learn more about Tonya Harding as a person and get away from the stereotypes that the media has about her. Tonya Maxine Harding was born on November 12, 1970 in Portland, Oregon (The Tonya Harding Website). Childhood was extremely difficult. Her mother was allegedly abusive and her father suffered from physical problems that often prevented him from working. Her family had little money and stability. Growing up, Tonya had eight different addresses in the Portland area.

She began skating when she was about four years old and showed tremendous promise at an early age. Tonya won her first competition at the age of 5. By the age of 8, Tonya did her first triple jump. She went on to receive a silver medal at the world championships, fourth at the Olympics and her second national title (The Tonya Harding Website). Then it started to go downhill for America's perfect girl. In 1994, Harding earned international scrutiny by pulling off one of the most famous sports scandals.

Nancy Kerrigan was hopeful of earning the gold medal at the Olympics. She had just ended practice for U.S. trials and was getting ready to go home happy. A man ran by her and "clubbed" Kerrigan on the knee. Soon, Harding's ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly, was arrested for his involvement in the attack. Harding admits a week later to knowing about the attack and mass media were all covering the Harding-Kerrigan investigation. She plead guilty to hindering the investigation into Kerrigan's attack, allowing her to avoid jail time (Harding-Kerrigan Fiasco).

Under the plea bargain, Harding was stripped of her title and banned from competing in the U.S. for life. During the rest of the 1990's, Harding continued to make headlines over small domestic incidents and car wrecks (Who 2. com... ). In 2002, she took on Paula Jones in a made-for-TV boxing match on Fox. She has recently made appearances on Rosanne, Larry King Live, and The Weakest Link (Biography. com... ).

She lost her first professional boxing match against Samantha Browning in a very close decision. She now plans on becoming the "best female boxer in the world". I believe that Tonya Harding has become an outcast of society because of her wrongdoings. Although I admire her determination, she could have gone about achieving her goals in a different manner. She is a heroine to who is trying to find their place in this world. I enjoyed learning more about her as a person and not the stereotypical ideas that the media puts out.

I hope that she will straighten out her life and make herself productive.