Olympics scandal judge axed
13 April 2012
The French judge at the centre of the Salt Lake City ice skating scandal has been suspended by the International Skating Union.
The ISU found that Marie-Reine le Gougne gave Russian figure skating pair Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze a first-place vote despite believing that the Canadian pair gave a better performance.
Le Gougne was, according to the ISU, acting on the instruction of French ice skating chief Didier Gailhaguet - who has also been suspended.
Le Gougne and Gailhaguet have been banned from participating in any ISU events for three years, as well as the 2006 Winter Olympics.
