I take it back

Attorney: Judge denies figure-skating fix to investigators

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- In three hours of calm, composed testimony, the judge in the center of the figure skating scandal denied to investigators that she was part of any vote-swapping deal and said she voted for the Russian pairs team on merit, her attorney said Thursday.

During an interview with International Skating Union investigators Wednesday, Marie-Reine Le Gougne completely recanted the accusations that several witnesses reporting hearing her make in an emotional outburst last week following the pairs competition, attorney Max Miller told the Associated Press.

"She was under extreme pressure, feeling emotionally assaulted and even physically assaulted when she made those statements," Miller said.

Asked why she had named French figure skating chief Didier Gailhaguet as the one who had pressured her into voting for the Russians over a Canadian pair, Miller said, "She did it to escape further pressure, to deflect criticism."

Miller, a local attorney who has represented the French delegation in commercial matters, and colleague Erik Christiansen, accompanied Le Gougne into the interview with ISU investigators Gerhard Zimmermann of Germany and Gerhardt Bubnik of the Czech Republic. A court stenographer recorded her testimony.

"She was fine," Miller said. "There were no tears yesterday."

But Miller described Le Gougne as "fragile right now."

"That's understandable. Her picture is all over the place and there have been a lot of accusations," he said.

"The three basic aspects of her testimony were that she denied any deal, any vote-swapping," Miller said. "She stated she felt that on merit the Russians were better and that's why she voted for them. The accusations of nefarious conduct were untrue."

The ISU suspended Le Gougne indefinitely last week, and she could face permanent suspension.

"The relief we're seeking is reinstatement," Miller said.

As a result of Le Gougne's accusations last week that she was pressured to back the Russians to ensure a French victory in ice dancing, Canadian skaters Jamie Sale and David Pelletier were given a second set of gold medals while the Russian pair, Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sukharulidze, were allowed to keep the golds they won.

Gailhaguet, who has denied pressuring Le Gougne, testified for 45 minutes Wednesday before the ISU investigators.

The ISU has not said when its investigation will be completed.

Gailhaguet said investigators were looking at "a much larger context." A skating judge who has been questioned agreed.

"The people conducting the investigation are asking questions about everything. They're going where the testimony leads them," the judge said on condition of anonymity.

Dick Pound, a Canadian member of the International Olympic Committee, said he was wary of any secret investigation but is more concerned about whether it will be thorough.

"If we've learned anything from the Salt Lake City bribery scandal it is that things like this don't just go away," said Pound, who chaired the IOC's investigation into the bidding for these games. "This investigation has to restore credibility to figure skating."

Canadian judge Benoit Lavoie declined comment on reports that he had written a letter to ISU president Ottavio Cinquanta saying Le Gougne had approached him last fall to discuss a vote-swapping scheme involving the pairs competition.

According to the reports in several newspapers, the letter also said Marina Sanaia, the Russian judge in the pairs final, asked Le Gougne to cast her top vote for the Russian team.

Cinquanta denied receiving any such letter, saying "I've never seen a letter with an implication of Russia, where an implication means a certain responsibility." Sanaia declined comment on the accusation.

 

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