Surya Bonaly's quiet revolution - CBC Player's Own Voice

This is where we discuss figure skating and skating related items. How did you favourite skaters perform, and so on? However we never speculate on the private lives of skaters, like who might be going out with whom, because that is poison and is not tolerated here. A good guideline is that if it's not publicly announced, in the papers etc. then it's probably best to leave it alone. Is it a gray area? Then write to me and ask.
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Elizabeth
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Location: Ottawa, ON

Surya Bonaly's quiet revolution - CBC Player's Own Voice

Post by Elizabeth »

Check out the podcast: https://www.cbc.ca/sports/podcasts/play ... -1.5656256
French figure skater Surya Bonaly's career truly is the stuff of legend.

She was the first woman ever to perform back flips in competition — the jump remains illegal to this day. Her gymnastic virtuosity set her apart from her contemporaries, as did her principled defiance at unfair judging. When she handed back her silver medal at the 1994 world championships, the gesture was compared to the raised fists in Mexico City in 1968.

Bonaly revolutionized her sport, yet never considered herself to be a rebel. She quietly did what she thought was right and let the figure skating world create its own uproar.

A classic Bonaly performance delighted fans and brought entire arenas to their feet, but left judges bound by the rules to award relatively low scores compared to the audience's boisterous reactions.
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fred
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Re: Surya Bonaly's quiet revolution - CBC Player's Own Voice

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I tend to think that it wasn't that the judges were "bound by the rules." They may have been to some extent, but I have little doubt that racism was also playing a part. Ms Bonaly deserved so much better.
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