Margot Robbie meets Tonya Harding at I, Tonya premiere

Margot Robbie was said to be ‘thrilled’ when Tonya Harding turned up at the premiere of her new biopic movie I, Tonya, in which Robbie plays the disgraced figure skater.

The pair were snapped together on the red carpet event in Los Angeles, with Harding said to be ‘wiping away tears’.

Co-star Allison Janney, who plays Harding’s mother in the film, said: “Wow, this is incredible.”

Meanwhile, Sebastian Stan, who plays Harding’s ex-husband Jeff Gillooly, told People: “I don’t know if I should even say ‘Hi’ to her, I mean, I play Jeff! I’m totally star struck right now.”

He’s probably right to have reservations, considering the murky story that the movie tells.

Harding narrowly avoided jail for her part in a plot to have her rival, Nancy Kerrigan, beaten as she left a training session so that she’d be unable to compete at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer.

Gillooly, who with Harding’s bodyguard Shawn Eckhardt hired another man to attack Kerrigan with a telescopic baton, took a plea bargain in return for his testimony against Harding.

They all served time in prison, except for Harding, who pleaded guilty and received three years probation.

The incident shook the world of sport, and Harding was banned for life from the US Figure Skating Association.

She later took up professional boxing, and in 2010 set a new land speed record for a vintage coupe.

The movie, which plays the incident out as a dark comedy, has received rave reviews.

It hits screens in the UK on February 20, 2018.

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