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FORT MYERS, Fla. - It was one of those magical moments that changes a life, comparable to a fortunate soul who picks out six numbers at a 7-Eleven and becomes a millionaire overnight. Nothing quite prepares you for what comes next.
Kimmie Meissner went from a promising teenager in women's figure skating to a world champion March 25.
Boom. The ice princess became a queen.
She had a street named after her.
Cal Ripken Jr. sent her a congratulatory e-mail.
She chatted with Katie Couric at New York's Rockefeller Center.
President Bush invited her to read books to kids for an Easter celebration in the White House.
This is where the blissful innocence of youth kicks in. Meissner embraces all of it with a wide-eyed wonder you'd expect from a 16-year-old junior at Fallston High School in Bel Air, Md.
"I have so many requests to do things and it's really neat because I'm not used to that," she said. "And you people want to talk to me?"
The flattering barrage of interest is tempered by demands far away from the ice. Even world figure-skating champions are not exempt from schoolwork, taking the SATs and cleaning their room.
Not surprisingly, Meissner is the only performer on the John Hancock Champions on Ice tour assigned homework. The tour features stars of previous Olympics, among other performers. Meissner performed during the opening night of the show in Fort Myers over the weekend, skating to Eva Cassidy's melodic version that "Somewhere Over The Rainbow."
Mother Judy Meissner was among the crowd at Germain Arena. She is Kimmie's traveling companion for the show, helping keep schedules straight for her only daughter and making sure that the opportunities are manageable and don't become overly intrusive.
Despite the lucrative appeal of proceeds from professional exhibitions that will help offset an estimated $100,000 cost of coaching, choreography, dresses and equipment, Meissner will skate with the stars intermittently.
Schoolwork and prepping for the SATs will limit her availability to 10 shows on the tour, which runs into August.
All the rules of engagement changed when Meissner made an unexpected early charge in her career competing against a formidable field in the World Figure Skating Championships in Calgary, Alberta.
Skating to Belkis, Queen of Sheba during her long program, Meissner worked the crowd into a frenzy. She landed seven triple jumps - the most of any skater in the competition - and the approval rating was reflected by the noise drowning out the final notes of Meissner's music.
Meissner scored a personal best of 129.70 in the free skate, for a total of 218.33. She was nearly nine points ahead of silver medalist Fumie Suguri of Japan and nearly 10 ahead of Sasha Cohen of the United States.
"I just put everything out there, and everything clicked," Meissner said.
World champion.
"If somebody says it out loud or they announce it, it's like, oh, they're talking about her," Judy Meissner said. "You have to remind yourself.
"To see the joy on her face, you knew it was a special moment."
No one saw it coming.
This marked her first year skating on the senior circuit because she was too young to compete a year ago. She would become the youngest member of the U.S. Olympic team, finishing sixth in the Winter Games in Turin, Italy, in February.
She then suffered a ruptured eardrum on her flight home from Italy and had to fight off the flu she developed during her last days overseas. It would disrupt her training for two weeks.
Even without the "world champion" label that came later, the Olympic experience had been exhilarating.
She marched in the opening and closing ceremonies, met athletes from across the world and came home to a hero's welcome.
Thousands of residents honored her during a hometown parade in Bel Air, where she hopped on a Segway, a futuristic, self-balancing scooter. She did just fine after receiving a half-hour training session from the Bel Air Police Department.
The winning worlds experience caught the local folks a bit off-guard, until they borrowed a theme from Townsend, Md., which honored Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps by having a street named after him.
"Kimmie Way" was unveiled this month.
"I don't think they knew what else to do," Judy Meissner said.
The perks have kept flying.
She threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the Phillies' season opener against the St. Louis Cardinals in Philadelphia.
Growing up with three older brothers helped prevent her from first-pitch fright.
"They asked me, `Where do you want to stand?' " Meissner said. "I'm going from the mound. I can make it. You think I'm a little figure skater. I can do it."
She made an appearance on "Today" on Thursday morning, skating at Rockefeller Center before flying into Fort Myers. She will be working the White House lawn next Monday as part of ceremonies that include an Easter egg hunt.
All of this could just be the beginning of a glorious ride for Meissner, who now becomes the front-runner to lead the U.S. team into Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Veteran Michelle Kwan is pondering making yet another Olympic run but remains undecided. Cohen, a silver medal winner at the Olympics and worlds, isn't expected to compete beyond this year.
But there remains other pressing obligations for Meissner.
She has missed significant time in school because of the Olympics and World Championships, though her teachers have been kind enough to help tutor her individually in the evenings so she doesn't fall off track. (Meissner is an A and B student).
She needs to study for the SATs, originally scheduled for April but now pushed back to June.
A junior prom awaits as well.
"Some priorities have to come first, and school is one of them," Judy Meissner said. "And this is one of the biggest years. If only I can get her through this year."
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(c) 2006, The Orlando Sentinel (Fla.). Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service.
