Kimberly Meissner, 2006 World champion and 2007 U.S. champion, announced today that she will spend the next six weeks training with Richard Callaghan in preparation for the 2008 World Championships.
“I’m just really trying to put all my focus and energy into training for Worlds,” Meissner said. “I’m grateful to Pam Gregory for everything she has done, but I needed to make some changes in order to regain my focus and confidence.”
Meissner, who began skating competitively in 2000, won gold at this year’s Skate America in Reading, Pa. She followed with a silver medal at Trophée Eric Bompard in Paris and a sixth-place finish at the Grand Prix Final in Torino, Italy.
After a seventh-place finish last week at the 2008 U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Saint Paul, Minn., Meissner decided a coaching change was necessary. “I know I’m capable of making the podium at Worlds; that’s my main goal right now,” Meissner said. Callaghan is perhaps best known for coaching Todd Eldredge, a six-time U.S. champion and the 1996 World champion.
Eldredge will also assist Meissner in her training for the upcoming World Championships. Callaghan has also worked with 2004 World champion Shizuka Arakawa, 1998 Olympic champion Tara Lipinski and 1995 U.S. champion Nicole Bobek.
