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Opinion: Skater attacked on ice? Sensational but just not true

Figure skating has never needed help from social media to produce more than its share of drama. As evidence, I’ll just mention one name and rest my case: Tonya Harding.

Nonetheless, the hysteria of social media can take a run-of-the-mill figure skating moment and turn it almost instantaneously into a budding international incident, even if it turns out later to not be true at all.

This happened in the past day with a Wednesday practice collision of sorts at the world championships in Saitama, Japan, between American Mariah Bell and South Korean Eunsoo Lim, who happen to be training partners under coach Rafael Arutunian in Los Angeles.