Melissa Militano Explained

Melissa Militano
Fullname:Melissa Mary Militano
Country:United States
Birth Date:26 April 1955
Birth Place:Rockville Centre, New York, U.S.
Death Place:Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Height:5inchesft0inchesin (ftin)
Formercoach:Peter Dunfield
Ron Ludington
Skating Club:SC of New York
Retired:1975

Melissa Mary Militano (later Warkmeister; April 26, 1955 – July 16, 2024) was an American competitive figure skater who competed as a single skater and pair skater. As a pair skater, she won the U.S. Figure Skating Championships three times, in 1973 with her brother Mark Militano and in 1974 and 1975 with Johnny Johns. Their coaches included Peter Dunfield and Ron Ludington.

Biography

Melissa and Mark Militano represented the United States at the 1972 Winter Olympics where they placed 7th.

Militano was also a talented singles skater. At the 1970 United States Figure Skating Championships, she became one of the first female skaters to successfully perform a triple toe loop jump in competition, in a performance that won her the bronze medal in the junior ladies division.[1] At the 1971 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, she won the junior ladies title, again landing a clean triple toe loop.[2] She later gave up competing in singles skating to focus on pairs.

Militano and Johns retired from competitive skating in 1975 and toured with Ice Capades. After her marriage in 1979, she had little involvement with skating for many years, but later worked as a part-time coach in Las Vegas, Nevada. She died there after a brief battle with lymphoma on July 16, 2024, at the age of 69.[3]

Competitive highlights

Ladies' singles

National
Event197019711972
align=left bgcolor=cc9966 3rd J bgcolor=gold 1st J 8th
J = Junior level

Pairs with Johnny Johns

International
Event19741975
align=left 8th 6th
National
align=left bgcolor=gold 1st bgcolor=gold 1st

Pairs with Mark Militano

International
Event19691970197119721973
align=left 7th
align=left 8th 8th 6th 9th8th
align=left 4th bgcolor=silver 2nd
National
align=left bgcolor=cc9966 3rd bgcolor=silver 2nd bgcolor=silver 2nd bgcolor=silver 2nd bgcolor=gold 1st

References

Notes and References

  1. "U.S. Championships", Skating magazine, Apr 1970
  2. "Nationals", Skating magazine, Apr 1971
  3. News: Paris Champion Melissa Militano Passes Away . 19 July 2024 . US Figure Skating . 18 July 2024.