M
mathman444
Guest
Re: Linda Fratianne Update
To me, the saddest part is that, from all reports, Linda Fratianni allowed the controversy over the 1980 gold medal to rankle in her heart for decades, poisoning her spirit. I hope that's wrong, but both she and Frank Carroll have given that impression.
Of course it is a bitter blow when you think that you have won the game on the playing field, only to have it taken away by the referree. But holding a grudge only hurts you, not the person that you have a beef with. Never mind Sonja Henie and Ulrich Salchow, fixed judging has been part and parcel of the Olympic Games ever since the Emperor Nero won the gold medal for singing, despite having to place armed guards all around the stadium to prevent the audience from attempting to escape the horrible racket by climbing the fences.
Look at all the times that an Olympic boxer has just beaten his opponent to a pulp, only to have the judge (perhaps from an unfriendly country) give the prize to the other guy. That's the nature of judged sports; that's the nature of an international competition in which each country strives to outdo the others in medal counts and displays of patriotic furvor.
All top skaters have lost competitions that they thought they should have won, and, if they are honest, have won competitions that maybe they should have lost. As David Pelletier said, in the midst of the 2002 pairs controversy:
"If I didn’t want this to happen to me, I would have gone downhill on skis."
Mathman
To me, the saddest part is that, from all reports, Linda Fratianni allowed the controversy over the 1980 gold medal to rankle in her heart for decades, poisoning her spirit. I hope that's wrong, but both she and Frank Carroll have given that impression.
Of course it is a bitter blow when you think that you have won the game on the playing field, only to have it taken away by the referree. But holding a grudge only hurts you, not the person that you have a beef with. Never mind Sonja Henie and Ulrich Salchow, fixed judging has been part and parcel of the Olympic Games ever since the Emperor Nero won the gold medal for singing, despite having to place armed guards all around the stadium to prevent the audience from attempting to escape the horrible racket by climbing the fences.
Look at all the times that an Olympic boxer has just beaten his opponent to a pulp, only to have the judge (perhaps from an unfriendly country) give the prize to the other guy. That's the nature of judged sports; that's the nature of an international competition in which each country strives to outdo the others in medal counts and displays of patriotic furvor.
All top skaters have lost competitions that they thought they should have won, and, if they are honest, have won competitions that maybe they should have lost. As David Pelletier said, in the midst of the 2002 pairs controversy:
"If I didn’t want this to happen to me, I would have gone downhill on skis."
Mathman