SURYA BONALY 1998 Nagano FS olympics championships

[Chikpea19]

lol, in your face!

[igotahellokitty]

I remember this when I was a little girl

[eMCizzle1]

"she's gonna get nailed." LOL

[Tfreshhy]

she's now my coach. so blessed.

[stefan7171]

@Tfreshhy Lucky u...she's awesome! Had no idea she was coaching...what city do you live in? (meaning i'm curious where she lives & coaches)

[mattdenney07]

@stefan7171 pretty sure it's Las Vegas

[carrigallen98]

I remember watching this in 1998 and being stunned.

[skated67]

BY FAR MY FAVOURITE SKATER

brilliant x

[downtownchicagobarbi]

I always loved her skating and felt like the judges didn't like her look or style of skating that's why they held back from giving her high scores.

[victoriaindigo]

I love how she landed the backflip on one foot so technically it wasn't illegal

[StarfucCed]

Love when people really DARE to Surprice other people in a positive way! She was awesome, remember that when I was little and saw that :D

[aclark1760]

@If1234: Good question. Originally the backflip was declared illegal because they thought it couldn't be landed on one foot. Surya Bonaly and Ryan Bradley have proved otherwise, but the rule still stands.

[lf1234]

Question; what makes the backflip illegal?

[MusicLuver093]

Australia and Hungary certainly didn't like her lol

[jacsidmos77]

I didnt like her skating! it was too fast and had no artistry!! too wild

[JeremyKKrantz]

The backflip is at 3:45 for anyone who doesn't want to watch all 7 minutes

[ikachanusa]

She's a powerful skater,but more jumper than skater,I think.

She landed on 1 foot after back-flip.

That's totally amazing. But over all, I think Midori and Tara were a lot better than her.

Those two have charismatic skating.

[10000000000000000014]

what place did she get?

[betmol23]

ah she is my hero. I remember watching this as a kid and thinking she was awesome.

[karrtt1234]

The worst female skater ever !!! Scratching up the ice...

[10000000000000000014]

@karrtt1234 WHAT????????????

[jokerwildest]

@karrtt1234 I couldn't agree more !!

[Fireleigh]

@jokerwildest ya worst skater..why she is a 5 time european champion and 9 time french champ. get a clue.

[incrowdcynic]

Why would anyone upload such a terrible quality video?

[oldladykillaz]

for all of you who don't wanna watch the whole dam thing to see the back flip (like me) just hop to 3:45

[coccinelsucrer]

@oldladykillaz

Lord, THANK YOU!

[MTVMANN]

This REALLY helped Tara Lipinski in the unconscious eyes of the judges. It would have helped Tara following Surya regardless, but to follow after this...it helped her.

I do like the position she does after she lands the backflip though.

[Flore440]

Surya, tu as bien fait de faire ton back flip, à la fin de ton dernier programme en amateur. Un beau pied de nez pour ces juges qui ne voulaient pas voir en toi une deuxième Debbie Thomas.

Surya, well done, during you last programm before becoming a professionnal skater ! A good thing in order to tell off those bluddy judges who have never wanted to see a new Debbie Thomas.

[kev7978]

despite of surya might have lack of sportsmanship sometimes, she did the right thing here.

[FizikzNotPhorce]

I dont understand why a backflip is illegal if you land it on one foot, seems like unfair bullshit to me. A backflip is friggen hard to do, it demonstrates strength, finesse and athletic skill, seems you should get marks for showing you're one of the best at your sport in the entire world. I don't think she deserved to win but getting docked for a really well executed, difficult jump seems ridiculous. PLUS crowds love it, but who wants people watching competitions? that would be weird.

[hmwillow]

figure staking ain't circus mate

[KKKK1911]

@FizikzNotPhorce:

Answer at 5:13

She was the only one to be able to do it, so no mistakes in her program would have given her the gold medal.

[FizikzNotPhorce]

@KKKK1911 no it wouldnt, a backflip is an illegal jump in figure skating.

[Pyretix]

wtf creepy ass beginning

like something out of the ring

[KokoFMB]

"Like something our of the ring"

LMFAO!

Too funny.

[mike4n6]

Love her, love her bitchiness and LOVE her backflip.Of course I was pulling for Kwan back then but still loved Surya's routine, fall and all.

[theodorelaurence]

I love that she did that. Barely anyone remembers skaters who don't medal at the Olympics, but everyone remembers this. Bad ass.

[tt247jer]

Exactly! Perfect... she's the best!

[jamarsano]

The French skaters completely stole the show in Nagano in my opinion.

First there was Candeloro's performance - he was unspeakably good and the Japanese crowd clearly loved him (the girls especially - but who can blame them?).

And then lovely Surya - she realized she couldn't win but wanted to give a fabulous performance.

And both of them finished with their back to the judges - it was all about the crowd and making them happy, not the bloody judges.

[littlepsyche]

She's not just pure power, though I think she defines it.

Rather, her finesse is noticeable to me.  There are skaters who can jump powerfully and not know what to do across the ice the rest of the time--how to hold their hands or show any grace at all.

I think this skate (even with the missteps) showed just how smooth and graceful she is.

I liked it. :)

[yahdude07]

I never cared for the way she set up her jumps, but I feel she took way too much criticism for not being artistic. I loved this program. It is one of my favorites of all time. That back flip really went well with the music. Her scores shouldn't have been that low. I also really liked her exhibition at the 94 Olympics.

[ryanfskater]

her marks were so low for one because her jumps were not all there, she did fall, two foot and cheat jumps but the biggest hit was the back flip , i bet you she lost at least .3 to .5 for that alone . altho that was awesome haha i would of given her marks :P

[lotus8998]

I was only 12 during these Olympics and I still remember this routine. =)

And I'm not sure why anyone would put in the amount of major work to get to the Olympics if they aren't serious. about winning. If her routine had gone smoothly, I really doubt she would have pulled that stunt.

[Meskiagkasher]

@lotus8998 yep. she knew she wouldn't get a medal and this was her last performance before turning pro. with this she gave the judges the finger.

[MOKandRIFF]

greatest. olympic. moment. ever.

[shivakrishnarama]

This is why figure skating is a joke on the whole, there's probably only a handful of people who can do that. You're going to tell me it's not worth something?

[smartskater1]

Nice job Surya. Teaching those dumb judges a lesson to the subjectivity of this sport.

[48RookieProduction84]

If you ask me, all this "being artistic" crap was total bullshit. Nicey nice girls like Michelle Kwan, Lu Chen, and all those other girls who were "artistic" symbolise that female skaters will always be soft unlike the male skaters who are fierce. Surya Bonaly tried to change that by attempting quads and backflips but the judges didn't like it because they didn't want variations of the female image.

[velocity246]

@48RookieProduction84 I agree. Surya wanted to show that women could be just as athletic as the men and she wanted to push the boundaries!

[hyancinth70]

Hey, if you're going to go out, you may as well go out with a bang!! Gives people to remember her by, whether you like her or not.

[iheartrg11]

The scoring of the routine was an injustice. This is a great routine, she skates with an injured right foot, and still manages a back-flip with a one foot landing. She can jump REALLY high, and though she lacks the artistry, I'd rather have this powerful creative routine opposed to the frilly routines that really bore me, yet those routines when medals. Surya Bonaly was robbed many times. Poor girl.

[methosimortal]

I find a lot of the comments a bit unfair to Surya. I mean, sure, she was never an artistic skater and it cost her greatly in the medal count but she was extremely charismatic and a real power skater.

And while other skaters can boast on the fact that they have won olympic medals it also true that the public can't remember most of their names. I doubt people will forget who Surya Bonaly is anytime soon.

[bus114]

Never quite able to reach the Olympic medal podium in repeated attempts, she was reduced at the end to a meaningless gymastic stunt. It was as if she were saying to her competitors, "I can do something you can't -- a back-flip with a one-foot landing." Of course they might well reply, "We can do something you can't -- win Olympic medals."

[anontu2000]

I disagree. The performance shows how amazingly strong she is, mentally and physically.  She is the only female skater who can land a backflip and make it look effortless. She obviously didn't care about what the judges thought, or her competition. She did it to show everyone she will not be restricted from what she does best. Bye hater.

[MelanieAF]

If she didn't care what the judges thought, why was she bothering to compete? She knew the rules as well as the other skaters, and they had to abide by them to try to medal. If she didn't want to be scored under the rules, she needn't have competed under them, nobody forced her to do so.

[viciouscanadianvixen]

it's called integrity! she committed to compete and saw it through even though she knew she wouldn't place high. wouldn't be much of a competition if everyone just up and quit because they weren't going to place first! she reached out to the fans by doing the backflip because it was what she was known for.

[AllRequired]

Sounds like she knew exactly what she was doing there. She fell, therefore costing her a crack at the podium, so she basically told the judges, "I've got nothing left to lose, so fuck you assholes, and fuck your rules."

[jogu78]

wow.... ur commentin on this vid too???? u really are a racist. dam girl

[strengthofwill]

She wasn't in it for Olympic medals. She was in it for the audience. Athletes who boast about winning medals...that's selfish. All they want is to win the medal for themselves. Athletes like Surya strive to make the audience feel something in the heart, and that's all. Sure an athlete who doesn't break the rules can do that to, touch the heart...I mean the judges look at the audience's reactions too right? But those other athletes, they weren't always aiming to do that with their entire program

[RustleLOL]

i do agree with you but i dont think that she wudve practised for years of her life just to boast to people.

[DJDiegoGarcia]

I beg to differ!Of course she was hoping to get a medal when she went to the olympics!She only performed the backflip because she knew she didn't have any chances after the previous mistakes.Althought i love her attitude and also it was a very good moment from the olympics.But don't you tell me that she didn't care about medals! Otherwise she wouldn't took off her silver medal still on the podium, on the worlds, because she thinks that she deserves gold.

[anonymuschan]

that was awesome. she should have won!

[Basileus1983]

It is one of the best skaters of history.

[venussimo]

I used to like Surya just because she was black like me then I saw Oksana winning the world champs and I knew Surya would never skate like that. There is more to skating than jumping. Just look at Surya and compare to Mao, Miki and Yuna. It's like apples and oranges but you can compare those three to Irina, Michelle and even Sasha. Okay Sasha's artistry is on it's own page

[waddleduckie1]

Surya's the true QUEEN of the ice!! Now, and Forever~~!

[Basileus1983]

yes! of course!

She is the best.

[hockeymaster2000]

I can do back flip better.

[yakuzaman79]

Surya always the best!!!

[2PHILADELPHIA215]

and she finishes with her back to the judges....LMAO I Luved this program. In your face.

[teaandcoffee11]

Surya you rock !!!

[pinoykiddxoxo]

she should get some style points for the back flip even tho its illegal

[Mslaydi]

Pinoykiddxoxo,

It wasn't illegal when she first did it. It was made illegal afterward.

I often wonder why it was made illegal.

[aclark1760]

I remember Scott Hamilton saying that it was because you couldn't land it on one foot. Surya proved that you could, but it didn't change the ruling.

[lf1234]

@aclark1760 , so with every other element its wrong to land on two feet but not this one? Do the judges make up the rules as they go along? What bullshit!!!!!!!!

[chinkytwinky1981]

The backflip has been illegal in skating since the 70s when Terry Kubicka first did it.

[Imogence]

LEGENDARY FUCKING PERFORMANCE.

[Scott89119]

She skates like a linebacker.

[monkeybear25]

lol!

[monkeybear25]

she can do a backflip and land on ONE leg...how does she fall on a simple jump???

she's cool :)

[venussimo]

lol exactly what I was thinking. It seems like she used to spend all her time mastering the wrong elements while struggling with simple artistry

[ncblkking252]

does anyone know why that awesome ass move is illegal

[tubeviewerbalpha9217]

It probably has something to do with the danger of performing such a move on the ice and thus not wanting to encourage younger skaters to learn it. Gymnastics does the same thing, but usually with underscoring moves they don't want used as opposed to making them outright illegal.

[monkeybear25]

SUCK IT JUDGES

[MichelleKwanForever]

It's actually because the judges like to see everything landed in one foot and most backflips you land with two.

[gayskatingfan]

Yeah but she can land it on one foot so it shouldnt be a problem then right, hehe. :)

[MichelleKwanForever]

Yea, agreed :p If she lands it on one foot, it's more difficult than Tara's Triple Loop-Triple Loop...right? hehe. :)

[gayskatingfan]

I would like to think so. :)

[MichelleKwanForever]

The judges sometimes were not fair for Bonaly. So it was good that she did it right there!

[gayskatingfan]

Yeah she knew she had no shot even a bronze really by that point, and it was also her last amateur event, so why not take out years of frusteration with absolutely nothing to lose. I bet she felt a heck of alot better doing that and coming 10th then not doing it and coming 8th anyway.

[MichelleKwanForever]

Yea, agreed man!

[canaletto333]

Great girl. This salto was fantastic!

[TowerBlock77]

Best. Moment. Ever. Suck it, you corrupt judges!

[Vulturep]

The Olympics are fraudulent. This is talent.

[nattiegreen]

One of my all-time favourites. Such beauty and athleticism, beautifully matched...

[wolfwilliams]

The world we live in.... judges, rules, anything to deny the individual creativity of a free-thinker and an artist like this beautiful young skater.

From a French-loving American... merci, ma chere! C'etait beau!

[matthews028]

The flip is at about 3:45.

[ghbaby08]

I saw a video of her when she was younger and I was like, where is the booty? Didn't realise she was only 15 back then. Then I saw this one and I was like, yep, there it is! If Serena can play tennis with one, Surya can definitely figure-skate with one! lol

[waddleduckie1]

Who cares, O117812, it's not the judges who were running the show, it's Surya Bonaly who was running the show with her impressive, mind blowing skating! Surya Bonaly's born to be the amazing entertainer on these silver blades!

[thatkrazynativekid]

one of the best skaters i've ever seen and all she ever got was the shaft. least she went out in style :-)

[ptrzAlyson823]

That was SO COOL! Why did she have to get disqualified?? I know its illegal but... That was so cool!!

[creegordon]

Alright Surya! You go! I always thought Surya was a great skater and should have won a world title...

[sayomsskiver]

u go surya, its all about the exit in style, woohoo.

[weloveannanetrebko]

They should have given her extra for that coz she landed that on one foot...

[O177812]

due to saftey it's illegal in competitions..

[HCAFx101]

OMG its so cool how she did the backflip!

[IncubusStar]

old hags, who cares what they think. they are envious of her skill.

[MrsGamgee977]

I never warmed up to her skating style but one can't help but cheer for her guts and character. What a lady!

[darealest006]

I think she's awesome. I've always thought that she was a threat.  I think the judges were just racist.

[amexred]

I loved the "we are not worthy" bow some of the audience was giving!

[vlcupper]

Damn, I remember this. My whole family cheered when she did the backflip.

[fatalbeauty]

Ohhh this one of the only protest action in this shy world of skating!!!! Well done! Vive la France, et la Revolution française!!! lol!

[synchroboy]

surya rocks!!! I love how she went out in style!!! With a big fat middle finger up to all the evil judges that put her down!! Her marks weren't even all that low considering she threw in an illegal element!! Lol!!!

[michaelxgoesrawr]

I loved it.

I thought it was a big,

finger-in-the-face to the

judges, she didn't care what

they thought. And thats what I

think everyone should feel, when their

being judged.

[8uychi]

O.M.G. i love her so much!!! doing the illigal backflip and ending with her back to the judges.. she's AMAZING... i just LOVE her!!! great posting!!