Korea's figure skating "Vogue goddess" Lee Hae-in (21·Korea University) and the "quad king" Ilia Malinin (21·United States), who had heated the world with pink romance rumors, were embroiled in a historic scandal.
The U.S. "Bild" reported on the 28th (Korean time) that "a cheating scandal involving Malinin has erupted and the fallout is spreading like wildfire."
The controversy began when a video leaked showing Malinin, who had been reported by U.S. media to have gone on a "cat cafe date" with Lee Hae-in, dancing closely with an unidentified woman at a club.
Lee Hae-in finished eighth at the Milan Olympics with a total score of 210.56, defending the pride of Korean women's figure skating. Her "grim reaper" concept and K-pop dance performed in the gala received worldwide praise, and she achieved the feat of ranking second in "Olympic top 5 looks" selected by Vogue Italia.
According to the U.S. outlet "Big Lead," the video circulating on social media showed Malinin pressing his body against a blonde woman at a closeness beyond that of lovers as they danced.
Investigations revealed that the woman was Gracie Gold (30), a two-time U.S. national champion and a bronze medalist in the team event at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, adding to the shock.
The problem did not end there. Circumstantial evidence emerged suggesting their meeting was not just simple acquaintance but an "inappropriate relationship."
Gracie Gold had last year begun a public relationship with Nam Nguyen, a former Canadian figure skating representative. In that situation, allegations arose that the two had an inappropriate encounter.
The uproar escalated uncontrollably when Gracie Gold's boyfriend Nam Nguyen spoke out. Nguyen changed his X (formerly Twitter) account name, retweeted messages condemning Gold's affair and expressed his sense of betrayal.
Nguyen said, "Malinin is a famous skater. Gracie betrayed me by performing an inappropriate dance with Ilia. Imagine your partner doing the same thing," venting his anger. In effect, he carried out an exposé that Malinin had stolen another man's woman.
As the controversy grew, Nguyen posted an apology saying, "The past few days have been confusing. I will take full responsibility for immature actions," but this instead served to prove "the close video of Malinin and Gold was real," pouring fuel on the fire.
Some figure skating fans responded to the Malinin rumors by saying, "He stole his senior's woman," or "His skill is quad jumps, but his character is disqualified."
[Photo] Yahoo Sports capture.
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