In today's world, scandals are nothing new. They are hidden beneath the poverty level of many sports and games each year. This year, however, at the 2002 winter Olympic games in Salt Lake City, Utah, history was made. Through the bullying of one country for its own fame and fortune, the misjudged competition of couples figure skating led to the pride and glory of another. Russian figure skaters Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze performed very well on the night of the final free-skate, but the Canadian duo Jamie Salé and David Palletier skated the performance of a lifetime. Millions were listening and watching when the scores were announced for the Canadian favorites. The audience was in a state of shock and disappointment to learn that the couple's best was not good enough; they ranked second next to the Russians, it just didn't add up. Only a day later, the truth was revealed when French judge, Marie Reine Le Gougne, announced that she had been pressured into voting for the Russian couple despite who actually performed better. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) took action on the misconduct by eliminating Le Gougne's vote, which left a tie for first between Canada and Russia. For only the fourth time in Olympic history a second medal was awarded at a special, double-gold medal ceremony that was held on February 15. Many people are confused on whether or not the IOC made the right decision, but, considering the inconsiderate actions of unreliable authorities, their choice in this case was for the best.
The purpose of this bibliography is to provide information on the recent events involved in the figure skating scandal by summarizing three articles over the issues at stake. These articles give a variety of views and beliefs of what should have happened in this case, and what needs to happen in the future. Many people are concerned with the way in which this was handled and how the judging of figure skating will be handled in the future, but what can be done?.
