Marilyn Meeker was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 ice dancer. With partner Larry Pierce, she captured the junior title at the 1959 United States Figure Skating Championships

United States Figure Skating Championships

The United States Figure Skating Championships is figure skating competition held annually to crown the national champions of the United States. The competition is sanctioned by U.S. Figure Skating. In the U.S. skating community, the event is often referred to informally as "Nationals".Skaters...

. The following year, 1960, they finished second in the Nationals and fifth at the World Figure Skating Championships

World Figure Skating Championships

The World Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which elite figure skaters compete for the title of World Champion...

.

The duo appeared poised to win the U.S. title in 1961, until Meeker suffered an injury that caused Pierce to join forces with Diane Sherbloom

Diane Sherbloom

Diane Carol "Dee Dee" Sherbloom was an American figure skater who competed in ice dance. Previously paired with Roger Campbell, she had no intentions of competing at the 1961 United States Figure Skating Championships until a twist of fate brought partner Larry Pierce her way...

 for the season. Pierce and Sherbloom went on to win the gold medal at Nationals, while Meeker was unable to compete. Meeker's misfortune proved to be good fortune for her: Pierce and Sherbloom were killed, along with the rest of the U.S. Figure Skating team, when their plane (Sabena Flight 548

Sabena Flight 548

Sabena Flight 548, registration OO-SJB, was a Boeing 707 aircraft that crashed en route to Brussels, Belgium, from New York City on February 15, 1961, killing the entire United States Figure Skating team on its way to the 1961 World Championships in Prague, Czechoslovakia.The flight, which...

) crashed near Brussels, Belgium on the way to the World Championships.

As of May 2007, Marilyn (Meeker) Durham resides in New Braunfels, TX with her husband, John, of 45 years; they have two adult children and two granddaughters.

Results

(with Larry Pierce)

Event	1959	1960
World Championships World Figure Skating Championships The World Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which elite figure skaters compete for the title of World Champion...		5th
U.S. Championships United States Figure Skating Championships The United States Figure Skating Championships is figure skating competition held annually to crown the national champions of the United States. The competition is sanctioned by U.S. Figure Skating. In the U.S. skating community, the event is often referred to informally as "Nationals".Skaters...	1st J.	2nd