Tonya Harding, an American singles skater, emerged from an unconventional background compared to the figure skating norm.
From a modest upbringing, she was self-reliant and had talents beyond skating, including auto mechanics and pool.
She rose to prominence due to her exceptional jumping ability. In 1987, she made history by being the first woman to perform multiple triple axels in a competition.
By 1991, she had won several titles. In contrast, Nancy Kerrigan, Harding’s main competitor, embodied the traditional figure skater and garnered several endorsements.
Desperate for similar success, Harding, influenced by her then-husband Jeff Gillooly, was involved in a scheme to injure Kerrigan, executed by Shane Stant.
The attack occurred, but Kerrigan recovered in time for the 1994 Winter Olympics.
Although Harding won the 1994 US Nationals, she faced controversy at the Olympics, finishing eighth.
Following this scandal, Harding faced ostracization and shifted her career, briefly becoming a professional boxer and later an announcer for TruTV.
Here are some of the most inspiring quotes by Tonya Harding.
Best Tonya Harding Quotes
I want to get back and do the things that I loved to do, which were my triples. And I know I could do them. – Tonya Harding.
Some people, if you eat a carrot, you’re killing it. – Tonya Harding.
I have never been the stereotypical figure skater. – Tonya Harding.
She hits me and she beats me and she drinks. My mom is an alcoholic. – Tonya Harding.
I was definitely a tomboy. I hated dolls. – Tonya Harding.
There’s no such thing as truth… Everyone has their own truth. – Tonya Harding.
I think that many people are the victims of abuse every single day and can’t stand up for themselves. People need to be able to understand that we need to stand united and that abuse should not be happening anymore. – Tonya Harding
I’ve been nothing several times. But it’s my faith in myself and in my father that comes back to me and makes me get back up off my butt and be something worth being proud of. – Tonya Harding.
My movie now, to me, is going to help so many people to realize that it is okay to ask for help. It took me so long to be able to ask for somebody to help me. – Tonya Harding.
Oh my God, It was totally the most awesomest thing. ‘Cause leading up it, you’re like, ‘I can’t do it! I can’t. I can’t!’ And then, bam, I can! And all those people who said I couldn’t make it, well f*** you! I did!. – Tonya Harding.
I moved around 13 different times before I was in fifth grade, not having money, not having a lot of friends. – Tonya Harding.
People have talked about it off and on, and there have been people who have stood up for me and have said, ‘Hey, we know her, and she is a good person.’ – Tonya Harding.
I’m not an educated woman. What am I gonna do for the rest of my life? I’m an athlete… And now I have absolutely nothing. – Tonya Harding.
Famous Tonya Harding Quotes
One thing I like about boxing is that I will not have to deal with the same kind of politics that I had to in skating. In boxing, it is not about your appearance, or how your costume looks, what color it is, or how much it costs. – Tonya Harding.
I was a little tiger. I loved skating. You couldn’t get me out of my skates. As many times as I could go to the rink, I was there. – Tonya Harding.
I’ve been with my husband for seven years. With my husband and my son, I get my second chance in life to be loved and be happy. – Tonya Harding.
I always wanted my daddy to be proud. – Tonya Harding.
Top Tonya Harding Quotes
The media had me convicted of doing something wrong before I had even done anything at all, before I had talked to anyone, before I get out of bed. I’m always the bad person. – Tonya Harding.
My relationship with my mom is really bad. – Tonya Harding.
I was told my whole life, you’re fat, you’re ugly, you’re never going to amount to be anything. – Tonya Harding.
I have always loved to skate, and that is all I wanted to do. Having my whole, entire career taken away from me by somebody else – not losing it myself – I do have blame, but when somebody takes your whole, entire life away from you, and you don’t know what to do, it’s like you’re lost. – Tonya Harding.
The movie portrayed me as this person who cussed every 10 seconds, and I don’t cuss like that. – Tonya Harding.
It was so hard to survive – moving so much, not having many friends. But I loved my skating. – Tonya Harding.
It’s an image that the media has given me as a bad girl, and the only reason they gave me that image is just because of the few things that have gone wrong in my life, and also because I grew up living in a trailer. – Tonya Harding.
I love my country. If they don’t love me, I don’t care. – Tonya Harding.
Popular Tonya Harding Quotes
My biological mother made my clothes or bought my clothes from Salvation Army or Goodwill. – Tonya Harding.
My dad was always supportive of me and my skating, and he loved me as best that he could, and he worked hard. – Tonya Harding.
I like fighting, but I hate hurting people. – Tonya Harding.
Truthfully, I don’t remember much about anything after the Olympics ’cause I, I lost everything. – Tonya Harding.
