‘94 WINTER OLYMPICS / LILLEHAMMER : Harding Struggles Badly With Ankle Sprain : Women’s skating: The U.S. champion leaves ice in tears during practice, but is not expected to withdraw.

Discouraged by a sore right ankle, figure skater Tonya Harding left the ice at the Olympic Amphitheatre in tears during the middle of her practice Saturday and had to be coaxed to return.

Although U.S. Figure Skating Assn. officials said it is doubtful that the sprain will force her to withdraw from the Winter Olympic women’s competition that begins Wednesday, they plan to monitor her condition in practices today and Monday.

They have until Monday afternoon to replace Harding with alternate Michelle Kwan, 13, of Torrance, who is training near Oslo.

After a disappointing practice the day before, Harding seemed better initially Saturday. But when she failed to land every jump in the first half of a run-through of her four-minute freestyle program, she complained about her ankle to her coach, Diane Rawlinson, and her choreographer, Erika Bakacas.

“They keep telling me it’s getting better, and it doesn’t,” she said. “I skated worse today than yesterday.”

When Bakacas suggested that the problem was in Harding’s head, she said, “No, it’s not in my head. I have the mind-set.”

Harding quit in frustration shortly afterward, only to be retrieved by USFSA team leader Gale Tanger.

“I think she gets down on herself,” Tanger said. “It was a hard day for her today. I didn’t want her leaving the ice thinking she can’t get it back together.”

When Harding returned, she performed several spins before attempting two more jumps, which she landed with difficulty.

According to USFSA officials, Harding has received ultrasound treatments on the ankle since October. They said she reported no pain when she won the national championship last month, but they learned last week that she again was having problems during practices in her home rink in Portland, Ore. She iced the ankle during much of the flight to Norway last Wednesday. Rawlinson said she doubts the injury is serious.

“It’s in her head,” she said. “She is feeling a lot of pressure. She is feeling very insecure about being here and having everyone see her as the villain.”

Asked if Harding will compete, Rawlinson said, “She’d better.”

Kwan’s coach, Frank Carroll, said he will be disturbed if Harding skates in Wednesday’s technical program and then withdraws from Friday’s freestyle program because of the injury.

“I have no problems with her skating here,” he said. “That’s a decision of the Olympic committee and the USFSA. That’s fine.

“But if she does the technical and doesn’t do the freestyle because of this injury, it will kill me because she will have taken a chance away from Michelle.”