When reigning U.S. Women's Figure Skating Champion Nancy Kerrigan was attacked before the 1994 U.S. Championships, the whole event became front page news. Then it was discovered that the men who planned and carried out the attack were associated with Tonya Harding, Kerrigan's chief rival and the winner of the 1994 Championship. Both Harding and Kerrigan would wind up on the 1994 Olympics Team, which took place a month later. Harding's husband and bodyguard were easily arrested and convicted for the assault. Then Tonya Harding had to plead guilty to hindering prosecution, which meant she was banned for life from the United States Figure Skating Association. After that, Harding became a byword for trash, celebrity culture, and bad life decisions, while Nancy Kerrigan became the leading female figure skater and an icon of the sport.