Former Olympians: Where Are They Now?

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The modern Olympic Games or Olympics are the leading international sporting event featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes around the world compete for Gold and to claim dominance in their competitive sport. The Olympic Games are also considered to be the world’s foremost sports competition with more than 200 nations participating. Millions of people tune into Olympic coverage when the Games are held and cheer behind those who are competing. But once the Olympics are over, these athletes remained in the spotlight, often because of their gained celebrity but sometimes as a result of scandal and controversy. Wonder where some of the most recognizable faces in Olympic history are today? Here’s where six of them are now.

Tonya Harding

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Former skater Tonya Harding, who competed in the Olympics in 1002 and 1994, is most associated with the 1994 Kerrigan scandal. She pleaded guilty to conspiracy to hinder prosecution and was placed on three years’ probation and fined $160,000, according to the New York Times. After a number of short-lived careers, she became a boxer. Following her probation, Harding resigned herself to private life, occasionally serving to answer trivia questions or the subject of an ironic museum in Brooklyn named Think 1994.The film I, Tonya, which stars Margot Robbie and tells the story of the 1994 attack on Kerrigan from multiple perspectives, brought Harding back into the spotlight. At first, Harding was hesitant about the film, but overall, she seems to like its portrayal of her life.

Nancy Kerrigan

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Figure skater Nancy Kerrigan won bronze in Albertville in 1992 and took home a silver medal at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, despite a knee injury received at the hands of a man hired by rival Tonya Harding’s ex-husband. Following the 1994 Olympics, Kerrigan married, had a family and continued as one of the sport’s most recognizable stars. She went on to perform in various skating shows and made TV and film appearances according to biography.com. Now, she no longer competitively skates. In regards to the film, I, Tonya Kerrigan, who was at the center of the controversy isn’t contributing to it. “I really have nothing to say about it, I haven’t seen anything,” Kerrigan told The Boston Globe. “I haven’t watched anything.”

Bruce Jenner (Caitlyn Jenner)

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Bruce Jenner became an instant sensation when he won the gold medal in men’s decathlon at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. He later found fame in television and became a reality TV star with his extended family’s show, “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.” In 2015, she revealed her transgender identity and changed her name to Caitlyn, a highly publicized transition. In 2016, Jenner was involved in a fatal multiple-vehicle collision on the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California. Kim Howe, an animal rights activist, was killed when Jenner’s SUV ran into Howe’s car. Accounts of the sequence of collisions have varied, as have the number of people injured. Prosecutors declined to file criminal charge, but three civil lawsuits surfaced.

Carl Lewis

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Track and field star Carl Lewis collected nine gold medals from 1984 through 1996 two in the 100 meters and four in the long jump. Lewis retired from the sport two decades ago. Since then, the former sprinter and long jumper has been in and out of the spotlight. He’s had cameos in such movies and TV shows as Perfect Strangers, Speed Zone and Alien Hunter. His run for New Jersey’s state Senate was cut short when he failed to meet residency requirements in 2011. He’s worked as a motivational speaker and marketer, amassing an estimated net worth of $20 million according to Celebrity Net Worth. Most recently, he has been coaching track and field athletes at the University of Houston in hopes of elevating the sport in America again.

Mary Lou Retton

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Gymnast Mary Lou Retton was a gold medalist in the individual all-round competition at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, the first American woman to win a gold medal in gymnastics. She has since been active as a sports commentator for a few Summer Olympics and a motivational speaker. If you want to see Retton in person on an average weekend, you can find her in the same place you might have found her in 1984, at a gymnastics meet. But of course, she is not doing flips on the balance beam anymore. After retiring from competition, she didn’t take the same routes as other gymnastic superstars, like coaching. Retton is just cheering, enjoying life in the stands as the mother of four daughters, all of whom are involved in gymnastics.