Marie-Reine Le Gougne
Encyclopedia
Marie-Reine Le Gougne, often known simply as "the French Judge", was a central figure in the 2002 Olympic Winter Games figure skating scandal
.
as a child in France
. She competed at a high level and won the bronze medal at the French National Championships twice. She decided later to become a skating judge, and progressed rapidly up the ranks. By the time she was 25, she had an appointment to judge international figure skating competition
s. At the age of 36, she judged at the 1998 Winter Olympics
, considered a high honor for a figure skating judge. She was promoted with a referee's appointment, and selected again to judge at the 2002 Winter Olympics
in Salt Lake City, Utah
. Le Gougne had the reputation of being a competent judge. With the support of the Fédération Française des Sports de Glace (FFSG, French skating federation), she was planning to run for a position on the International Skating Union
's Technical Committee at that organization's Congress later in 2002.
. Although four other judges also placed Yelena Berezhnaya
and Anton Sikharulidze
ahead of the crowd favorites Jamie Salé
and David Pelletier
in the free skating, Le Gougne was immediately singled out for suspicion by television commentators and other observers. When she returned to the officials' hotel after the competition, she was confronted in the lobby by Sally Stapleford, then the chair of the Technical Committee, who began to question her about her judging of the event. Le Gougne broke down in a tearful outburst that was witnessed by a number of other skating officials who happened to be present in the hotel lobby. She said that she had been pressured by the head of the French federation, Didier Gailhaguet
, to put the Russians first as part of a deal to give the ice dancing
gold to the French ice dance team. She repeated these statements in the judges' post-event review meeting the following day, but in the following days and weeks, she issued a number of contradictory statements and retractions. She later stated that she had truly believed the Russian pair deserved to win and had been pressured to say the Canadians were better. Both Le Gougne and Gailhaguet were eventually suspended from the sport for three years by the International Skating Union
, which never made any serious investigation into the events.
After the Games, Le Gougne wrote a book about her experiences, Glissades à Salt Lake City (ISBN 2-84114-650-2).
In June 2006, she ran for the presidency of the FFSG and of the Federal Council of the FFSG, but was not elected. She remained president of the Eastern League of the FFSG.
She was also running for the presidency in 2010 and failed with only 37 votes (less than 5%).
2002 Olympic Winter Games figure skating scandal
At the 2002 Winter Olympics held in Salt Lake City, the figure skating competition was the source of much controversy and one of the immediate causes for the revamp of scoring in figure skating.-The competition:...
.
Early life
Le Gougne took up figure skatingFigure skating
Figure skating is an Olympic sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform spins, jumps, footwork and other intricate and challenging moves on ice skates. Figure skaters compete at various levels from beginner up to the Olympic level , and at local, national, and international competitions...
as a child in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. She competed at a high level and won the bronze medal at the French National Championships twice. She decided later to become a skating judge, and progressed rapidly up the ranks. By the time she was 25, she had an appointment to judge international figure skating competition
Figure skating competition
-International:* International competitions sanctioned by the International Skating Union. These competitions are held using ISU rules; skaters are entered by their respective national skating federations....
s. At the age of 36, she judged at the 1998 Winter Olympics
1998 Winter Olympics
The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially the XVIII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 7 to 22 February 1998 in Nagano, Japan. Seventy-two nations and 2,176 participans contested in seven sports and 72 events at 15 venues. The games saw the introduction of Women's ice...
, considered a high honor for a figure skating judge. She was promoted with a referee's appointment, and selected again to judge at the 2002 Winter Olympics
2002 Winter Olympics
The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...
in Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
. Le Gougne had the reputation of being a competent judge. With the support of the Fédération Française des Sports de Glace (FFSG, French skating federation), she was planning to run for a position on the International Skating Union
International Skating Union
The International Skating Union is the international governing body for competitive ice skating disciplines, including figure skating, synchronized skating, speed skating, and short track speed skating. It was founded in Scheveningen, Netherlands in 1892, making it one of the oldest international...
's Technical Committee at that organization's Congress later in 2002.
2002 Winter Olympics Scandal
Le Gougne became notorious for her role in the 2002 Olympic Winter Games figure skating scandal2002 Olympic Winter Games figure skating scandal
At the 2002 Winter Olympics held in Salt Lake City, the figure skating competition was the source of much controversy and one of the immediate causes for the revamp of scoring in figure skating.-The competition:...
. Although four other judges also placed Yelena Berezhnaya
Yelena Berezhnaya
Elena Viktorovna Berezhnaya is a Russian pair skater. With partner Anton Sikharulidze, she is the 1998 and 1999 World champion, 1998 Olympic silver medalist and 2002 Olympic champion....
and Anton Sikharulidze
Anton Sikharulidze
Anton Tarielyevich Sikharulidze is a Russian pair skater. With Elena Berezhnaya, he is the 1998 and 1999 World champion, 1998 Olympic silver medalist and 2002 Olympic champion....
ahead of the crowd favorites Jamie Salé
Jamie Salé
Jamie Rae Salé is a Canadian pair skater. With partner David Pelletier, she is a 2002 Olympic Champion and the 2001 World Champion. Salé & Pelletier's Olympic gold medal was shared with the Russian pair Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze after the 2002 Olympic Winter Games figure skating...
and David Pelletier
David Pelletier
David Jacques Pelletier is a Canadian pairs figure skater. With his partner Jamie Salé, he was the co-gold medal winner at the 2002 Olympic Winter Games...
in the free skating, Le Gougne was immediately singled out for suspicion by television commentators and other observers. When she returned to the officials' hotel after the competition, she was confronted in the lobby by Sally Stapleford, then the chair of the Technical Committee, who began to question her about her judging of the event. Le Gougne broke down in a tearful outburst that was witnessed by a number of other skating officials who happened to be present in the hotel lobby. She said that she had been pressured by the head of the French federation, Didier Gailhaguet
Didier Gailhaguet
Didier Gailhaguet is a former French figure skater and the president of the Fédération Française des Sports de Glace ....
, to put the Russians first as part of a deal to give the ice dancing
Ice dancing
Ice dancing is a form of figure skating which draws from the world of ballroom dancing. It was first competed at the World Figure Skating Championships in 1952, but did not become a Winter Olympic Games medal sport until 1976....
gold to the French ice dance team. She repeated these statements in the judges' post-event review meeting the following day, but in the following days and weeks, she issued a number of contradictory statements and retractions. She later stated that she had truly believed the Russian pair deserved to win and had been pressured to say the Canadians were better. Both Le Gougne and Gailhaguet were eventually suspended from the sport for three years by the International Skating Union
International Skating Union
The International Skating Union is the international governing body for competitive ice skating disciplines, including figure skating, synchronized skating, speed skating, and short track speed skating. It was founded in Scheveningen, Netherlands in 1892, making it one of the oldest international...
, which never made any serious investigation into the events.
After the Games, Le Gougne wrote a book about her experiences, Glissades à Salt Lake City (ISBN 2-84114-650-2).
In June 2006, she ran for the presidency of the FFSG and of the Federal Council of the FFSG, but was not elected. She remained president of the Eastern League of the FFSG.
She was also running for the presidency in 2010 and failed with only 37 votes (less than 5%).