As we approach Sunday’s Pride March, an annual celebration in the LGBTQIA+ community, Demis Maryannakis, figure skater and coach, recalls a memorable parade a few years ago when he took his talents from ice to roller blades and lived out loud. “I’ve been in the parade,” Maryannakis said. “When the Barbie movie came out, I skated for Glitz Entertainment along the parade route in costume and we had disco ball helmets. It doesn’t get better than that.”
Maryannakis, whose mother is Black and originally from NYC and late father was Greek, first took to the ice at age seven. He had been fascinated by figure skating at the 1992 Olympic Winter Games. Adding to the excitement is that women’s gold medalist Kristi Yamaguchi came from Northern California, which is where he grew up. Already in gymnastics, he didn’t seriously pursue skating until age 13.
“It was right around the 1998 Olympics,” said Maryannakis. “Tara Lipinski and Michelle Kwan, I was again inspired. I went to Oakland Ice Center where Christy Ness, Kristi Yamaguchi’s coach, was the director.”
After meeting with Ness, Maryannakis began taking lessons and quickly progressed. By 14, he was landing double axels. He skated at various rinks in the area — Oakland, San Francisco and San Jose — sometimes alongside some high profile names in the sport, like Rudy Galindo. “I had some great skating icons to look up to who would come and skate in those rinks,” he recalled.
He competed for a few years but stopped skating around age 17 after several injuries. Fast forward more than a decade and Maryannakis was living in Queens, with the World Ice Arena nearby. “I checked it out and thought, ‘Let me start skating again,’” he said. “I had to relearn everything … Even though I was scared, I liked the challenge of it.”
He started taking lessons and even worked in the cafe at the World Ice Arena. In time, he found his way to adult competitions (for skaters 25 and older). “It’s such a supportive, cool environment, and it is competitive,” Maryannakis said. “My first nationals I was ninth (in 2017). I worked my way from ninth to seventh to eventually a silver medal (in 2021).”
Recently, he’s coached at the SkyRink at Chelsea Piers as well as at the Gottesman Rink at the Davis Center (north end of Central Park) in the winter. After a few years away, he’s planning a return to adult competition. “I’m back in training,” Maryannakis said. “I have a new program I’d like to debut.”
