Olympian Kimmie Meissner Returns to Bel Air

With the torch on the long journey from Torino to Vancouver, and her skates hung up for the season, Maryland native Kimmie Meissner has returned to her hometown of Bel Air in Harford County. Throughout downtown Bel Air on quaint Main Street, signs still sprinkle the small businesses with words of encouragement for a hometown wonder. Meissner is only 16 years old, and she has already gained the coveted title of a United States Olympian. In the 2006 Winter Olympics, Meissner competed for the first time among, and even against, fellow Olympians, many of whom had won medals in other Olympics. Despite this huge accomplishment, this kind of recognition for her graceful skating is not a first for the young woman. Meissner's first international gold medal was earned when she competed in the 2003 Junior Grand Prix event in Slovenia. Coincidentally, this was also her first career gold medal. From Slovenia, she went on to win a gold medal in the State Farm US Junior Championships in 2004. Also in 2004, she competed in the Campbell's Classic against experienced skaters such as fellow United States Olympians Sasha Cohen and Michelle Kwan. Amazingly, Meissner placed fifth, not an easy task for a first-timer. In 2005, she placed first in the State Farm Championship. Obviously, her success did not begin here; Meissner began her ice dancing career at the tender age of 6 after she had observed her three older brothers playing hockey. The rest, as they say, is history. She comments on her start, "When I was about 6 years old, I decided I didn't want to sit and watch them anymore (her brothers playing hockey). There were two rinks, one for ice hockey and one for figure skating. I didn't want to lose my teeth, so I thought figure skating would be better for me than hockey." As a junior at Fallston High School, Meissner has spent her year juggling midterms and world fame. To train for the Olympics, she left school halfway through each day and traveled almost two hours to Newark, Delaware, to train at the University of Delaware with fellow skaters and her coach, Pam Gregory. Though her training and tightly-scheduled lifestyle has been grueling, it has definitely paid off. When the announcement that Meissner would be going to the 2006 winter Olympics in Torino hit the airwaves, the community could not have been more excited or supportive. A local restaurant in Bel Air raised money to send some members of her extended family to the life-altering event so they could share in her experience. Soon enough, all of Harford County was cheering on their native with banners, ribbons and "Olympic parties" held throughout the county. Although Meissner did not win a medal in Torino, she was still bestowed a gold medal-winner's homecoming.

It is obvious that Meissner is adored in her hometown for more than athleticism. As with most athletes, there is more to her than her impeccable skating abilities. Meissner also enjoys playing the violin, riding horses, skiing, drawing, biking and playing tennis. She has also revealed to the United States Olympic Committee that her most prized possession is her cat, Ozzie, and that her personal motto has always been, "Do what you enjoy; enjoy what you do."

If you have missed the 2006 Winter Olympics, do not fear. Meissner expects to compete again in four years with more experience and drive than a sixteen-year-old could know. She does not plan to stop there; she yearns to study biology in college and go on to do great things. If she is to compete in four years with the same passion and fire she has embodied this year, it would not be surprising to see the little town of Bel Air experience an Olympic gold medal first-hand.