USFSA Won’t Stop Harding

The U.S. Figure Skating Assn. said Thursday that it will not pursue legal action that would prevent Tonya Harding from competing in the March 20-27 World Championships in Chiba, Japan.

Responding to a decision by a federal judge Wednesday in Portland, Ore., which granted Harding a temporary restraining order preventing immediate action against her, the association said in a statement that it is “deeply concerned with the court’s ruling and its impact on the USFSA’s ability to govern the sport . . . “

But the USFSA said that it will not try to have the ruling overturned in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals because of time constraints.

An attempt by the USFSA to reschedule a disciplinary hearing for Harding within 45 days was rejected by Harding’s attorneys.

Meanwhile, a Portland newspaper, the Oregonian, reported that U.S. Department of Justice and Detroit law enforcement officials will not continue investigations into whether Harding played a role in the Jan. 6 assault in Detroit against rival Nancy Kerrigan. A Portland grand jury will report its findings on March 21, the day Harding is scheduled to skate for the first time in Japan.