Sarah Meier (figure skater)

Personal life

Many members of Meier's family were involved in skating and other ice sports. Her mother is an international figure skating judge and her sister is involved in synchronized skating. Her aunt, Eva Fehr, a former figure skater, was her coach. Her father, uncle, and two cousins are ice hockey players.

Early career

Sarah Meier first stepped on the ice at the age of two years. She liked it so much that her mother sent her to children's courses at the age of four. When Meier was five years old she began taking private lessons and soon started to compete. She landed her first double axel at the age of ten and performed her first triple lutz when she was twelve. By the age of thirteen, she could land all of the triple jumps in practice. During the summers, there was no ice in her home town of Bulach so she moved around to Oberstdorf, Germany and Flims in Switzerland.

Meier made her first junior Grand Prix appearance in 1997, finishing 10th at JGP Slovakia. She continued to skate primarily in the junior ranks through the 1999–2000 season, when she won the bronze medal at Junior Worlds.

Senior career

In 2000–2001, Meier skated in both junior and senior events; she medalled in two JGP events, including a gold medal in the Czech Republic, and finished in 5th place at her second Europeans. She was 12th in her World Championship debut.

In November 2001, Meier twisted her left ankle and tore ligaments, resulting in the loss of three months of training. As a result, she missed her second Grand Prix event and the Swiss Nationals. She finished out of the top ten at the 2002 Europeans. She was 13th in her first appearance at the Olympics.

In 2002–03, Meier finished 5th and 7th in her two Gran Prix assignments. She withdrew from Europeans due to a foot injury, and finished 19th at Worlds. Prior to the 2003–04 season, Meier developed tendonitis in her right foot due to new boots and was unable to train from July to December. Consequently, she could only compete at the Europeans and Worlds, finishing 10th and 13th, respectively. She repeated her tenth place showing at the 2005 Europeans and dropped one spot at the 2005 Worlds.

Meier's 2005–06 season was more successful; she came in fourth at the Europeans, her best showing yet, and finished in the top eight at both the Olympics and the World Championships. She continued to move up the standings in 2006–07, winning the 2006 Cup of Russia and getting her first podium finish at the European Championships. Her silver medal was the first medal by a Swiss woman at the event since Denise Biellmann won in 1981. She won a second silver medal at the 2008 Europeans.

Meier competed in few events in her final three seasons due to a string of injuries. She missed much of 2008–09 due to spinal disc herniation and muscle problems, although she was able to compete at the 2009 World Championships and earned an Olympic spot for Switzerland with her ninth place showing. In 2009–10, Meier struggled with an Achilles tendon inflammation. She withdrew from the 2009 NHK Trophy because she was unable to put too much pressure on her toe pick. She finished 15th at the Olympics and failing to qualify for the free skate at the 2010 Worlds after a bad fall in the short program.

The many injuries Meier had suffered during the latter part of her career led her to consider retirement after the 2009–2010 season, but she eventually decided to remain in the eligible ranks for one last season, mainly in order to compete in her home country at the 2011 Europeans in Bern. She damaged ligaments in her foot at the 2010 Skate Canada, forcing her to withdraw from the event. The injury occurred on her favorite jump, the lutz, denting her confidence. Forced to sit out the 2010–11 Grand Prix season and Swiss Nationals, Meier announced prior to the Europeans that it would be her final competitive event. She finished third in the short program and second in the free skate, but her combined score was high enough to become European Champion. She reaffirmed her decision to retire immediately following her win, calling it "the right moment to stop... the perfect ending."

Post-competitive career

In May 2011, Meier announced that she would join Switzerland's "Art on Ice" Production as an executive for its talent team, responsible for talent scouting, looking after members of the team and working with parents, teachers, schools, team experts and Swiss Ice Skating. She is also involved in finding sponsors for Swiss skating.

Meier continued to skate as a pro skater, in shows and other events. She withdrew from the 2011 Japan Open due to swelling in her foot; the ligaments had not fully healed after the 2010 Skate Canada injury. In 2013, she began working as a journalist. In February 2015, She retired from show skating at Art on Ice.