Drew Meekins

Drew Meekins (born April 10, 1985) is an American pairs skater and choreographer. With former partner Julia Vlassov, he is the 2006 World Junior Champion. Meekins attended the 2018 Olympic Games with Mirai Nagasu.[1]

Drew Meekins
Drew Meekins with Jessica Rose Paetsch in 2008.
Personal information
Full nameAndrew Meekins
Country representedUnited States
Born (1985-04-10) April 10, 1985
Juneau, Alaska
Home townWellesley, Massachusetts
ResidenceColorado Springs, Colorado
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Former partnerJessica Rose Paetsch
Julia Vlassov
CoachDalilah Sappenfield
Laureano Ibarra
Former coachAlexander Vlassov
ChoreographerZuzanna Szwed
Tom Dickson
Skating clubSkating Club of Boston

Skating career

Meekins and Vlassov won the 2006 World Junior Championships. In their first season of senior international competition, they won the silver at the Nebelhorn Trophy, placed sixth at the 2006 Cup of China, and placed 5th at the 2006 NHK Trophy.[2] Vlassov and Meekins finished in 7th place in their senior debut at the 2007 U.S. Championships. They were fifth in the free program.

Vlassov and Meekins were assigned to two Grand Prix events for the 2007–2008 season; however, they were forced to withdraw from the 2007 Skate Canada International before the event began due to an injury to Meekins's shoulder which occurred during an attempted lift in practice. Vlassov and Meekins announced the end of their partnership on November 8, 2007.[3]

U.S. Figure Skating announced on July 14, 2008, that Meekins had teamed up with Jessica Rose Paetsch.[4] Paetsch and Meekins placed 10th at the 2009 U.S. Championships.

After qualifying for the 2010 U.S. Championships, Paetsch & Meekins announced the end of their partnership in December 2009.

Meekins is now a figure skating coach at the Broadmoor skating club in Colorado Springs, CO. He has worked with many skaters, including coaching and choreographing Vincent Zhou when he won the title of 2017 Junior world Champion[5] and Mirai Nagasu when she won bronze at the 2018 Olympic Games.[1]

Meekins now coaches a wide range of skaters and offers virtual lessons and other resources on his website.[6]

Early life and family
Drew's father, Russ Meekins, Jr., and aunt, Susan Meekins Sullivan, as Alaska state legislators in the mid 1970s.

Andrew Meekins, known as "Drew", was born in Juneau, Alaska on April 10, 1985. He is one of five children (four sons and one daughter) born to Edward Russell "Russ" Meekins, Jr. (born 1949) and his wife Nancy Harvey. All four of his grandparents moved to Anchorage, Alaska from the Northeastern United States during the tail end of World War II and were active in business and civic affairs in Anchorage throughout the middle and late 20th century. His father, aunt and grandfather all served in the Alaska House of Representatives as Democrats representing Anchorage. His father, the only one of the three to serve more than one term, was the House's majority leader in his last term (1981–1983). In that term, he played a key role in two events which rank amongst the most significant in the history of the Alaska Legislature: the mid-session overthrow of the Democratic House leadership and its replacement with a multi-party coalition, and the bribery conviction and subsequent expulsion of a member of the Alaska Senate. As a result of the fallout from these events, he soon found himself on the outs with Alaska's political establishment. The family left Alaska ca. 1990 and moved to Massachusetts, the home state of Nancy Harvey's parents, settling on Cape Cod. One of his brothers, Cam Meekins, is a rapper.[7]

Programs

(with Vlassov)

Season Short program Free skating
2007–2008[8] Malaguena
by Ernesto Lecuona 		Titanic Symphony
by Richard Clayderman
2006–2007[9]
  • Leelo's Tune
    by Maksim Mrvica
  • Sarabande
    by Maksim Mrvica
Warsaw Concerto
performed by Richard Clayderman
2005–2006[10] Picante
by Vanessa Mae 		Paychek (soundtrack)
by John Powell
2004–2005[11][12] Picante
by Vanessa Mae 		Paychek (soundtrack)
by John Powell
2003–2004[13] Beethoven's 5th
  • Mission Impossible
  • Pink Panther

Competitive highlights

With Paetsch
Event 2008–2009 2009–2010
U.S. Championships10th
Midwestern Sectionals3rd
Eastern Sectionals3rd

With Vlassov
Event 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07
World Junior Championships9th1st
U.S. Championships4th N.1st N.2nd J.3rd J.7th
Cup of China6th
NHK Trophy5th
Nebelhorn Trophy2nd
Junior Grand Prix Final4th2nd
Junior Grand Prix, Croatia3rd
Junior Grand Prix, Andorra2nd
Junior Grand Prix, Ukraine3rd
Junior Grand Prix, Belgrade1st
NACS Waterloo4th J.
NACS Ohio1st N.
Eastern Sectionals2nd N.1st N.
New England Regionals1st N.1st N.
N. = Novice level; J. = Junior level
gollark: * you are close to the birthday position, technically
gollark: That would be uncool.
gollark: I SUPPOSE you could use TIO.
gollark: osmarks.tk's secondary computing cluster, obviously...
gollark: Sponsored by osmarks.tk™.

References
  1. MACUR, JULIET. "How Mirai Nagasu Grew Up and Got Back to the Olympics". NYTimes. NYTimes. Retrieved 23 March 2018.
  2. Welcome to U.S. Figure Skating
  3. "Pairs Team Vlassov and Meekins Announces Split". U.S. Figure Skating. 2007-11-08. Retrieved 2007-11-08.
  4. "Pairs Team Jessica Rose Paetsch and Jon Nuss End Partnership". U.S. Figure Skating. 2008-07-14. Retrieved 2008-07-14.
  5. International Skating Union. "Zhou dazzles to capture world junior crown". Ice Network. Retrieved 16 March 2017.
  6. "Modern Figure Skating". Modern Figure Skating. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  7. Brannen, Sarah S.; Meekins, Drew (May 23, 2012). "The Inside Edge: Sarah, Drew (try to) go hip-hop". IceNetwork. Retrieved May 23, 2012.
  8. "Julia VLASSOV / Drew MEEKINS: 2007/2008". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on July 26, 2011.
  9. "Julia VLASSOV / Drew MEEKINS: 2006/2007". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on August 26, 2007.
  10. "Julia VLASSOV / Drew MEEKINS: 2005/2006". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 14, 2006.
  11. "Julia VLASSOV / Drew MEEKINS: 2004/2005". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on February 10, 2005.
  12. Mittan, Barry (May 8, 2005). "Arctic Pair Vlassov and Meekins". Skate Today.
  13. "Julia Vlassov & Drew Meekins". U.S. Figure Skating. Archived from the original on October 13, 2007.
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