Watch: Full replay of the 2024 Moomba Masters finals
RTB
Catch all the action from the finals of the 2024 Nautique Moomba Masters Water Ski and Wakeboard Tournament.
RTB
Catch all the action from the finals of the 2024 Nautique Moomba Masters Water Ski and Wakeboard Tournament.
Moomba Masters (image: DFW Waterski)
By RTB
3 minute play
In this quiz, you have to name the women with the most Moomba Masters titles this century.
The list contains 12 skiers, all of whom have won at least two women’s Moomba Masters titles in this century. The list is topped by two of the most dominant athletes to ever take to the Yarra, with 10 wins apiece. We have mentioned their country, as well as their Moomba title’s this century.
Note: Night Jump and Overall titles were not included.
Water skiers compete in the annual Moomba Masters tournament on the Yarra River (image: GM Marine)
By RTB
3 minute play
In this quiz, you have to name the men with the most Moomba Masters titles this century.
The list contains 13 skiers, all of whom have won at least two men’s Moomba Masters titles in this century. Surprisingly, no Australians make this list. We have mentioned their country, as well as their Moomba title’s this century.
Note: Night Jump and Overall titles were not included.
Image: Tournament Water Ski Australia
By RTB
3 minute play
In this quiz, you need to name the female skiers with highest winning percentage in professional tournaments since 2010.
The list has 15 skiers, all of whom have a winning percentage of greater than 10% in a single discipline competing in professional events since 2010. We have set the cut off at least ten professional tournaments in each discipline. The skier at the top of the list has not lost a tournament since 2013. We have given you the skier’s country, event, and winning percentage in the mentioned time period.
Data updated as of January 1, 2024
Ranking the best male overall skiers of all time.
Finally, we turn to the overall event, where we celebrate the true giants of the sport. In a realm where versatility reigns supreme, these athletes stand head and shoulders above the rest. The term “greatest athlete” is subjective, but here, we explore the remarkable careers of those who have not only achieved excellence but have conquered three distinct disciplines – slalom, trick, and jump – earning them the title of the sport’s greatest overall skiers.
These individuals have not just excelled; they’ve transcended the boundaries of what was thought possible. From the early pioneers, through the discipline’s professional peak in the 1990s, to the modern-day resurgence, our journey takes us through each skiers triumphs and tribulations. These overall skiers represent the pinnacle of the sport, demonstrating unmatched athleticism and finesse across the spectrum of water skiing events.
‘Greatest Of’ lists in any sport are inherently subjective and water skiing is no exception. There’s no definitive checklist to crown someone as the absolute best. Every fan out there has their own opinion. But decisions had to be made. We proudly present our picks for the 10 best male overall skiers in the history of competitive water skiing. So sit back, enjoy, and maybe even debate a little over our choices—after all, that’s the fun of it!
Llewellyn competes at the 1999 World Championships in Milan, Italy.
One of the first men to break 10,000 points in trick skiing, Kreg, the elder of the renowned Llewellyn brothers, was an incredibly well-rounded skier. The sole athlete in the professional era to secure World Championship medals across all four disciplines (slalom, trick, jump, and overall), Kreg played a pivotal role on the Canadian team during their groundbreaking victories in the 1990s. At the 1991 World Championships in Austria he not only secured medals in trick and jump but also finished as the runner-up in overall. Llewellyn’s margin of defeat was the tightest ever seen in the sport, with Patrice Martin claiming victory by a mere 0.2 overall points.
His performances laid the foundation for Canada’s inaugural victory in the teams competition, the first time the U.S. lost the title in the history of the tournament. Although he never quite clinched top honors, he achieved runner-up placements in men’s overall again in 1997, along with a bronze in 1999. His professional achievements include victories at the U.S. Open, U.S. Masters, and Moomba Masters.
Siemers poses next to his photo in the USA Water Ski Museum (image: @jimmy_siemers)
An exceptionally talented skier from an early age, the Texan prodigy demonstrated his prowess by clinching victories in tricks, jump, and overall at the 1998 U17 World Championships. In a remarkable feat, at the age of just 18 in 2000, he broke the world overall record, bringing an end to Patrice Martin’s nine-year reign as the world’s number one ranked overall skier. His dominance continued at the inaugural U21 World Championships in 2003, where he triumphed again in tricks, jump, and overall. Later the same year, he came tantalizingly close to replicating these achievements at the Open World Championships, securing wins in tricks and overall, along with a runner-up finish in jump. Siemers would then go back-to-back, winning a second overall world title in 2005.
However, Siemers’ ascent to the pinnacle of the sport coincided with the decline of professional overall tournaments. Unfortunately, 2000 marked the final year of overall competition at the U.S. and Moomba Masters, while the U.S. Open continued until 2003. His lone professional victory in the discipline came at the 2002 U.S. Open. Ahead of his time, it would take nearly two decades for another skier to match his incredible feat of scoring over 12,000 points in trick skiing and jumping over 70 meters (230 feet).
Image: @radarskis
After securing bronze at the 2019 World Championships in both jump and overall, Poland found another gear, breaking the world overall record in 2021 before winning one of the greatest overall battles in the sport’s history against Dorien Llewellyn and taking the world record back off Llewellyn in the process.
Dominant on the WWS Overall Tour, Poland emerged victorious as tour champion after an epic season long battle with Dorien Llewellyn and Louis Duplan-Fribourg in 2022, including one memorable tour stop where he won on all borrowed equipment. He followed up with an undefeated season in 2023, winning the final stop in style by breaking his own world record. After an early fall in the trick event at the 2023 World Championships, Poland was written off in the overall event before he produced the statement performance of the tournament the following day by running 10.25m (41’ off) for the first time to secure himself a runner up finish in the overall.
A quadruple threat, Poland is capable of winning events in slalom, tricks, jump, or overall as a member of the three most exclusive clubs in the sport; the 10.25m (41’ off), 70 meter (230’), and 12,000 point clubs. He stands as only the second man this century to secure podium finishes across all three disciplines at professional events. If Poland is able to maintain his current trajectory we expect him to finish his career much higher on this list.
Image: @tiaremirandaphotography
The first of a new generation of overall skiers, Sedlmajer’s foundation for success rested upon his slalom skills. Demonstrating remarkable versatility, he held the distinction, until last year, of being the sole male skier in the 21st century to secure podium placements across all three disciplines in professional tournaments. During his peak years, Sedlmajer dominated the World Championships, clinching two world overall titles and two runner-up finishes, showcasing his prowess at the only elite competition for overall skiers.
It’s one of the greatest tragedies of our sport that a skier of Sedlmajer’s calibre was given so few opportunities to showcase his talents. One poignant example is when he was left out of the invite list for the 2016 U.S. Masters, despite being the reigning world overall champion and the world’s number one ranked overall skier. Unfazed, he proceeded to claim victory in the U.S. Open slalom event later that year.
In 2017, Sedlmajer broke Jaret Llewellyn’s longstanding world overall record, a record that had remained unbroken since 2002. What adds to the remarkable nature of this accomplishment is the fact that he achieved this under the rules established almost two decades earlier, rules that significantly undervalued slalom in comparison to today’s standards.
Chuck Stearns jumps at the 1961 World Championships in Long Beach, California (image: HSLB)
Water skiing’s first ever superstar, Stearns was a household name across America during the 1960s. From 1957 to 1967, he clinched an astonishing 11 World Championships medals across all four disciplines, still one of only a handful of skiers to earn medals in slalom, tricks, jump and overall to this day. At the 1959 World Championships in Milan, he claimed the men’s overall title.
The first man to dominate at the U.S. Masters, Stearns secured overall victory four times from 1960 to 1965. Additionally, he was among the first Americans to receive an invitation to the Moomba Masters, the world’s only professional competition at the time. Stearns won the overall event on his debut visit in 1963 and followed up with an incredible showing in 1966, where he emerged victorious in the slalom, jump, and overall categories.
A truly versatile athlete, Stearns is the only skier in history to simultaneously hold top positions in both tournament skiing and ski racing. He boasts a remarkable record in the latter sport, being a 10-time winner of the Grand National Catalina Ski Race and setting the drag racing speed record at over 120 miles per hour. In an era when most competitive water skiers retired young, Stearns’ strict fitness regimen allowed him to remain at the pinnacle of the sport for over two decades.
Suyderhoud takes a spill at the Cal Cup in Berkeley, CA (image: Gary Warren)
The son of a rags-to-riches Dutch immigrant, who had served in the underground resistance during the Nazi occupation, Mike inherited his father’s tenacity and channeled it into water skiing as a young man. At 17 years old, he won his first of five World Championships, and by 18, he had set his first of three world jump records.
Suyderhoud helped the U.S. Team secure five World Championships team titles from 1967 to 1977, accumulating a total of 11 individual medals. His achievements included consecutive overall victories in 1967 and 1969, a runner-up finish (bolstered by golds in slalom and jump) in 1971, and a bronze in 1975. Domestically, he became a U.S. Masters overall champion, finally clinching the title in 1973 after six consecutive years of either second or third-place finishes. Furthermore, he claimed five consecutive overall titles at the U.S. Nationals from 1968 to 1972. Suyderhoud also achieved back-to-back victories in slalom, jump, and overall at the Moomba Masters during his visits to Melbourne. His remarkable career featured triumphs in every major tournament of his era.
Image: Yvon le Gall
Following his triumph in the men’s overall at the 1977 World Championships, Hazelwood was a constant presence on the podium for the next six years, securing back-to-back runner-up finishes in 1981 and 1983. While jump skiing undoubtedly stood as his strongest event, Hazelwood’s versatility was exceptional, earning him membership in the exclusive club of skiers to secure World Championship medals in all four events, totaling an impressive count of 10 medals.
Within Europe, Hazelwood claimed an incredible eight consecutive European Championships titles in overall from 1976 to 1983. Furthermore, he is one of only four men to win European Championships in all four events. A fierce competitor in all conditions, Hazelwood’s tenacity shone through as he secured four consecutive overall titles at the U.S. Masters from 1978 to 1981 and an impressive five consecutive Moomba titles from 1977 to 1981. His victory list extended to every major overall tournament across the globe, solidifying his legacy as a true champion of water skiing.
Duvall held No. 1 world ranking in either jump or overall for eleven consecutive seasons from 1983 to 1993.
Duvall’s first major victory in overall came as a 19-year-old at the inaugural World Games in 1981, where he won gold in jump and overall. Notably, Duvall remains the sole skier with a perfect undefeated record in overall at the World Championships. He secured four consecutive overall titles from 1981 to 1987, before retiring from amateur competition following the 1987 World Championships. Duvall’s contributions were not limited to individual achievements; he played a pivotal role in the United States’ dominance in the teams competition throughout the 1980s, successfully repelling strong challenges from Australia during that decade.
Among his numerous accolades, Duvall stands as one of only two men to attain three U.S. Masters titles in a single year, with four of his impressive tally of 13 U.S. Masters titles coming in the overall event. His prowess extended to the Moomba Masters, where he secured four overall titles, including three consecutive victories from 1984 to 1986. As a U.S. Open overall champion as well, Sammy’s exceptional talents were on full display in an era predating official world records. For six consecutive years, from 1983 to 1988, he reigned as the number one ranked overall skier in the world. His scores in his final season as the world’s best, including 4@11.25m (38′ off), 8,600 points, and 61.7m (202′), would have undoubtedly set the mark had official records existed at that time.
Canadian Jaret Llewellyn still walking on water at age 45 (image: Bernard Weil)
A late bloomer in the jump event, Llewellyn’s initial success came in tricks when he won the inaugural Junior World Championships in 1986. It would take him until age 20 in 1990 to jump 50 meters (164 feet), but within two years he was jumping over 200 feet and broke his first world jump record at the U.S. Masters in 1992.
No man can match Llewellyn’s 16 World Championships medals, with majority of these coming in the overall event where he finished on the podium nine times between 1991 and 2015. His breakout performance as a 21-year-old at the 1991 World Championships was particularly memorable, as he and his older brother Kreg picked up the overall bronze and silver respectively, leading Canada to teams victory. Across his career he was up against a peak performing Patrice Martin, then Jimmy Siemers, and finally Adam Sedlmajer, and was unlucky to only finish on top of the World Championship podium twice in 2001 and 2007. He broke the world record twice, with his final record of 5@11.25m (38’ off), 10,730, and 71.7 meters (235’) standing for an incredible 14 years, 7 months, making it the longest standing world record of all time.
On the professional circuit he was a five-time U.S. Masters overall champion. In 1996, he ended the Neville family’s stranglehold on overall at the Moomba Masters and would go on to dominate the event through the late nineties. He was also a two-time U.S. Open overall champion. Unfortunately for Llewellyn, the industry turned away from overall right at the peak of his career and the event was eliminated from legacy events such as the U.S. Masters, Moomba, and U.S. Open in the early 2000s. Fittingly, he has spearheaded the WWS Overall Tour in recent years, heralding a resurgence for the discipline.
Martin is one of the finest achievements in French sport (image: Graine de Sport)
Known as “Le Petit Prince,” this French prodigy burst onto the water skiing scene as a teenager, securing his first World Championships victory in tricks at just 15 years old in 1979. Initially specializing in trick skiing, he gradually mastered all three disciplines throughout the 1980s and, by the decade’s end, had risen to the pinnacle of the sport.
His extraordinary collection of 10 World Championships gold medals is only exceeded by Liz Allan on the women’s side. Immovable from the top of the podium, his winning streak of six consecutive World Championships in overall from 1989 to 1999 is the longest in our sport across any discipline. The most decorated skier in the history of the World Games, Martin clinched six golds, one silver, and one bronze from 1981 to 2001. Finally claiming gold in overall at the twilight of his career when it was reintroduced after a 20-year absence at the 2001 event. Within Europe he was virtually unstoppable, winning a total of 30 European Championship golds across slalom, trick, and overall, including nine overall titles spanning from 1984 to 2001, matching Hazelwood’s record.
On the professional circuit, he proved his mettle as a Moomba Masters champion, securing the overall title five times at the U.S. Masters and reigning supreme in the U.S. Open during the 1990s, with six consecutive titles from 1992 to 1997. Even though his two strongest events, tricks and overall, were not part of the pro tour, Martin remained a regular contender, even clinching a tour stop victory in slalom in 1996, edging out formidable opponents like Andy Mapple and Wade Cox. His reign as the number one ranked overall skier in the world spanned nine consecutive seasons, from 1991 to 1999. When the IWWF began recording world overall records in the mid-1990s, Martin was the first holder and broke the record three times throughout his illustrious career. His final record, set in 2001, of 4@10.75m (39.5’ off), 11,550 points, and 62.5 meters (205’), remains a highly competitive score in the sport to this day.
Sport can be cruel, and it’s not hard to imagine a world in which Llewellyn emerges victorious at a few additional tournaments, avoids injury, retains the world record, and ends up ahead of Poland on this list. After breaking the overall world record a month earlier, he finished 2nd in overall, winning the tricks, at the 2021 World Championships. Llewellyn’s other major victories include the 2019 and 2023 Pan American Games, the 2018 Latrobe City Invitational, and multiple stops on the WWS Overall Tour.
The Chilean won the world overall title at his home site in 2013 and backed it up with a second title in challenging conditions at the 2017 Paris World Championships. ‘Pipe’ is also a Pan American Games overall champion and won the 2017 Latrobe City Invitational.
The Argentinian secured five medals in men’s overall between 2001 and 2013, including a gold medal in 2009, and finished his career with three years as the number one ranked overall skier from 2009 to 2011 and gold at the 2011 Pan American Games.
Although primarily known as a jumper, he clinched an impressive five consecutive Moomba Masters overall titles from 1991 to 1995, matching Hazelwood’s record.
A three-time overall champion at all three major professional tournaments of his era, Roberge had great success at the Moomba Masters, U.S. Masters, and U.S. Open. While never claiming the highest honors, he finished on four consecutive overall podiums at the World Championships from 1983 to 1989, including finishing second to Patrice Martin by a margin of only 6 overall points in 1989.
Despite finishing on the podium at the World Championships eight times between 1981 and 1987, Mick could never quite claim the gold. He lost two of the tightest ever overall battles to Sammy Duvall in 1985 and 1987, with the margin less than 25 overall points each time. He did manage overall victories at both the U.S. and Moomba Masters.
Featured on the podium in at least one discipline at every World Championships from 1967 to 1975, including medals in all four disciplines and runner-up finishes in overall in 1973 and 1975. McCormick won three Moomba Masters overall titles. Additionally, four of his 13 U.S. Masters titles came in overall, and he joins Sammy Duvall as the only other man to win three titles in a single year.
Both of these men deserve recognition as two-time world overall champions.
Image: Mommer
By RTB
3 minute play
In this quiz, you need to name the male skiers with highest winning percentage in professional tournaments since 2010.
The list has 13 skiers, all of whom have a winning percentage of greater than 10% in a single discipline competing in professional events since 2010. We have set the cut off at least ten professional tournaments in each discipline. Four skiers have winning percentages of 50% or better. We have given you the skier’s country, discipline, and winning percentage in the mentioned time period.
Data updated as of January 1, 2024
Having No Difficulty In Keeping Up With Youth (image: The Ledger)
By RTB
3 minute play
In this quiz, you need to name all the male skiers over 40 years old who have jumped over 200 feet (60.9 meters).
The list has 14 skiers, all of whom belong to the exclusive club of men who have jumped 200 feet at least once in a world ranking tournament while over 40 years old. For the purposes of this quiz, age is measured in ski years, which means the skier’s age on January 1st of the year the score was achieved. You have three minutes to guess as many as you can. We have mentioned each skier’s country, as well as their year of birth, and top score achieved over 40.
Data updated as of October 31, 2023
Image: @tiaremirandaphotography
By RTB
2 minute play
In this quiz, you need to name all the male skiers who have run 10.75 meters (39.5′ off), jumped 200 feet (60.9m), and tricked 10,000 points.
The list has 12 skiers, all of whom belong to the exclusive club of skiers who have performed each of these impressive feats at least once in a world ranking tournament. Containing some of the best overall skier of the last several decades, the skiers on this list have won a combined 13 world overall titles. We have given you each skier’s country, the year they ticked off the last of the three achievements, as well as their top scores across all three events.
Data updated as of October 31, 2023
Image: Wake Scout
By RTB
4 minute play
In this quiz, you have to name every man to run 10.75m (39.5′ off) in the 20th Century.
There were 36 men to run 10.75 meters before the turn of the century, from the first in 1988 right up until 1999. Two legends of the sport achieved the feat for the first time on the same weekend during the ‘Thrilla at Hydrilla’ in Palm Beach, Florida. We have mentioned their country, along with the year they first successfully completed the 10.75m pass.
Hall of Famer Camille Duvall, a.k.a., the Golden Goddess of Water Skiing (image: eBay)
By RTB
In a recent episode of WaterSkier Magazine’s Podcast – Hit It!, the legendary Camille Duvall, hailed as one of the greatest water skiers of all time, took listeners on a journey through the golden age of water skiing. Her anecdotes and insights provided a unique perspective on the sport’s evolution, from its pinnacle in the late ’80s to the challenges it has faced in subsequent decades.
Duvall began by reminiscing about the extraordinary period from the early ’80s to the early ’90s, heralded as the golden age of water skiing. She described it as a time when the sport flourished, enjoying popularity across diverse demographics, thanks to sponsors like Coors Light and the emerging platform of ESPN playing pivotal roles. In her own words, “ESPN was in its youth; they didn’t have the big four [football, baseball, basketball, and hockey], so we had the luxury, privilege, and honor to be on national television every Monday night during the summer.”
Duvall expressed her pride in being part of a sport that had such a vast reach, allowing it to thrive and capture the imagination of the public, stating, “It was fabulous; we would go to the tournaments, we would ski, we’d do all the interviews; they’d have the television truck at the ski site. They would cut the one-hour show overnight and then they’d beam it straight up to ESPN.”
However, Duvall acknowledged the challenges the sport faced when it lost television exposure in the ’90s and 2000s, leading to a decline in sponsor support. Despite this setback, she commended the sport’s resilience in adapting to the times, particularly in embracing streaming platforms. In her words, “I’m really glad that we’ve embraced that; they’re doing a fantastic job with all of [the streaming].”
The discussion then delved into Duvall’s pivotal role in the breakaway Professional Association of Water Skiers (PAWS) Tour in 1990. Safety emerged as a paramount concern for Duvall, particularly given the challenges of skiing on large natural lakes. The PAWS organization aimed to address safety issues and collaborate with sponsors for the benefit of skiers. However, resistance from the existing tour, managed by WATERSKI Magazine, led to the establishment of a separate PAWS tour sponsored by Budget Rent a Car.
Reflecting on the reasons behind the PAWS Tour, Duvall emphasized, “The real impetus for it was safety for the skiers. Unlike today where they’re skiing on a lot of man-made lakes, we were skiing on huge natural lakes, so the wind would roll up, and the back of the jump is lifting out of the water, and they’re like ‘let’s go jumping, we have 15,000 people sitting on the shore’… at a certain point, yeah the show must go on, but you can’t risk hurting someone.”
Despite the initial success of the PAWS Tour, internal conflicts and a desire to unite the sport ultimately led to its discontinuation after just one season.
In closing, Duvall reiterated her deep-seated passion for water skiing, stating, “[I water ski because] I love it, I love the physical pleasure of it, I love being outside, I love being in the summertime, there’s nothing better than being in the boat with all of your friends and going out and water skiing. That’s why I water ski.”