Above: Kimmie Meissner celebrates after her monumental free skate at the 2006 World Championships. Photo credit: Getty Images
By Nicole Buddie
“I can still picture everything so vividly,” says Kimmie Meissner, as she reflects on winning the ISU World Figure Skating Championships nearly 20 years ago.
In 2006, Meissner captured the coveted title in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, at 16 years old.
Before the World Championships, Meissner made her Olympic debut and finished sixth. She was the youngest American athlete to compete at the 2006 Games in Turin, Italy, also 16 at the time.
Meissner describes her Winter Games experience as a steppingstone that prepared her for what was to come.
“Worlds was a lot of the same skaters who had competed at the Olympics with me,” Meissner says. “I felt like I had gotten all the nerves out there. The Games were my first big international.”
The buildup and pressure leading up to the Olympics set a high bar for the Maryland native. The intensity of her training played a huge role. She practiced two free skates and one short program a day, leading up to the World Championships.
Last March at TD Garden in Boston, Alysa Liu won the World title, becoming the first U.S. woman to do so since Meissner.
“I was working the night of the long program, and we were all watching it at work,” Meissner says. “I was telling my co-workers, ‘You know, she could get on the ice and take this title tonight’, and we sat there and watched until it happened.”
Meissner, a physician assistant in Baltimore, works in the labor and delivery center. The night of the women’s free skate at the World Championships, the hospital staff became some of Liu’s biggest fans.
“I had tears in my eyes by the end of her program,” Meissner says. “Just seeing how much joy she had on the ice. I felt like she knew she was going to be the one.”
Meissner’s childhood coach, Tracey Poletis, says that same joy was the reason Meissner was able to achieve all she did.
“Kimmie was the happiest kid on the ice,” Poletis says. “She was always smiling and would come skipping into the rink.”
Meissner left multiple marks on history at a young age, including being the first American and first woman to simultaneously hold the World, Four Continents and U.S. titles (2006–07); and in 2005, becoming the second American woman to land a triple Axel in national competition. She credits family and coaches for helping her achieve everything.
Pam Gregory served as another pivotal coach in Meissner’s Hall of Fame career. Under Gregory, Meissner won several titles, including the novice crown at 13 years old and the junior title at 14.
Training three sessions a day with Gregory during that time, Meissner learned to consistently land her triple jumps and double Axel.
Gregory continued to guide her rising star during her journey to the Olympic Games, World Championships and U.S. Championships.
“She just skyrocketed year after year; it was kind of magical,” Gregory says.
Meissner’s World title left her wanting more. In 2007, she won the Four Continents Championships and the U.S. title.
“She enjoyed every moment of the process, even the difficult training days we had. She trained for at least three hours a day on ice and always came eager,” Gregory says.
Meissner, who coaches now, hopes her students can appreciate the journey of the sport.
“I loved training,” she says. “I loved comparing day to day. That’s the best feeling as an athlete when you get to these pivotal moments, relying on your training.”
Liu is in the process of trying to make her second Olympic team.
Meissner says she’s rooting for her (as is the rest of the staff at the Baltimore hospital) and offers words of wisdom during this Olympic season: “Keep doing what you’re doing and keep this attitude you have toward skating right now.”
A mother now, Meissner shares her love of skating with her family. Her daughter, Skylar, frequently goes to the rink with her when she coaches.
“She’s always in awe at the rink; I say to myself, could this be something she loves to?” Meissner says.
Meissner coaches out of Ice World in Maryland and multiple rinks in Pennsylvania. She hopes her love for the climb both on and off the ice continues to inspire the athletes of tomorrow.
“I think it’s just about enjoying the process,” Meissner says. “I truly believe that is the most important thing you can do in this sport, and sometimes it can be so hard to recognize the small wins during, but you have to give credit where it’s due.”
