She gained the gold in the toughest of the races, the
30-kilometer, in which Russian Lyubov Yegorova,
who had already won three golds and a silver, was fa-
vored. Yegorova finished fifth. The famous Alberto
Tomba failed in his bid to win a third successive gold
for Italy in the men’s slalom, having to settle for the
silver.
The figure skating usually produces a number of
outstanding performances. By 1994, the rules had
been relaxed, in keeping with certain other sports,
to allow professionals to compete, though on an am-
ateur basis. This meant that the British dancers Jayne
Torvill and Christopher Dean, previous gold medal-
ists at Sarajevo (1984), could compete again, as
could Germany’s Katarina Witt. However, the judges
seemed at odds with the new rules and awarded
Torvill and Dean a very controversial bronze, be-
hind two Russian dance pairs. At a later press confer-
ence, the judges admitted that they had made mis-
takes in the scoring. Witt also placed very poorly.
Equally controversial was the gold awarded to the
young Ukrainian Oksana Baiul. Her gold was a fairy-
tale ending for her, as her coach had previously left
her, she had no funding, and she had been helped
only by her fellow Ukrainian, former gold medalist
Viktor Petrenko, and his coach. However, many felt
that the gold should have gone to American Nancy
Kerrigan, the more mature of the skaters. Moreover,
a few months earlier, Kerrigan had been clubbed in
the knee by an assailant linked to rival Tonya Har-
ding; thus, there was a large sympathy vote for Ker-
rigan. The incident certainly produced the largest-
ever American viewing audience for the women’s
figure skating events.
U.S. and Canadian Successes Besides Kerrigan’s
silver, Canadian Elvis Stojko won a silver medal
in men’s figure skating, and many felt that he,
too, should have received the gold with his athletic
brilliance. Canada gained gold in the women’s 7.5-
kilometer biathlon, breaking the European stran-
glehold over this event. However, in ice hockey, Can-
ada was defeated by Sweden in the final on a penalty
shoot-out.
For the United States, American speed skater Dan
Jensen finally won a gold medal in the men’s 1000-
meter, setting a world record, having failed to gain a
medal in four Olympic attempts at the 500-meter.
Yet he had won at the world championships a few
weeks earlier at the shorter race, breaking his own
world record. In women’s speed skating, Bonnie
Blair won the 1000-meter, making it a U.S. double.
Canada took the silver.
U.S. success began on the first day of the Games,
when Tommy Moe from Alaska beat the Norwegian
favorite in the downhill. Moe later gained silver in
the men’s super giant slalom. In the women’s ver-
sion, Diann Roffe won for the United States, making
another double.Impact International Olympic Committee presi-
dent Juan Antonio Samaranch declared the 1994
Games the “best Winter Games ever” in his closing
speech, but he also reminded his audience of the
1984 Sarajevo Games and the fact that Bosnia and
Herzegovina was in the midst of a war in 1994. The
peaceful and reconciling work of the Games was still
needed.Further Reading
Klausen, Arne Martin, ed.Olympic Games as Perfor-
mance and Public Event: The Case of the XVII Winter
Olympic Games in Norway.New York: Berghahn
Books, 1999. A sociological series of essays on the
Games.
U.S. Olympic Committee.The Olympic Centur y: XXV
Olympiad, Barcelona 1992, and Lillehammer 1994.
Tonawanda, N.Y.: Firefly Books, 1996. Includes
the official U.S. report of the 1994 Winter Games.
Wallechinsky, David.The Complete Book of the Winter
Olympics, 1994. New York: Little, Brown, 1993. A
preview of the 1994 Winter Games.
Wukovits, John.The Encyclopedia of the Winter Olym-
pics.New York: Franklin Watts, 2002. A compen-
dium of information on all the Winter Olympics.
David BarrattSee also Hockey; Kerrigan, Nancy; Olympic Games
of 1992; Olympic Games of 1996; Olympic Games of
1998; Sports; Stojko, Elvis. Olympic Games of 1996
The Event The staging of the XXVI Summer
Olympiad, an international athletic competition
held every four years
Date July 19-August 4, 1996
Place Atlanta, Georgia642 Olympic Games of 1996 The Nineties in America