By Jack Burden

Four countries, four tournaments, 10 days, and $150,000 in prize money—the busiest week in water skiing took the best slalom and trick skiers through a whirlwind tour of Europe.

The journey began on Wednesday and Thursday in Marrakech, Morocco, continued on Saturday and Sunday in the foothills of the Alps in eastern France, then moved to the French Riviera just outside of Monaco on Tuesday and Wednesday, and concluded near Madrid in central Spain from Friday to Sunday.

For trick skiing, the professional season has now concluded, while slalom has just crossed the halfway point, with clear leaders starting to emerge from what had begun as an uncharacteristically fragmented season.

In men’s slalom, which saw four different winners across the first four events, a clear leader for 2024 has emerged. The 41-year-old veteran Will Asher picked up three consecutive victories across Marrakech, Fungliss, and Monaco. Asher is now firmly in the lead on the Waterski Pro Tour and has finished no worse than runner-up in each of the six events he has competed in this season. Not only did the Englishman consistently finish on top, but he also did it in style, running 10.25m (41’ off) in both Marrakech and Monaco.

Another major storyline in slalom is the dominance of Team Syndicate, with skiers representing HO Skis claiming over 50% of podium finishes (12 out of 21) and all seven slalom titles across the four-tournament sprint. Jaimee Bull continued her dominance from last season, pulling ahead on the Waterski Pro Tour leaderboard. Rob Hazelwood and Allie Nicholson each won an event, with strong performances from Frenchman Sacha Descuns.

In tricks, world champion Erika Lang returned to her winning ways after a disappointing Masters. The American posted scores over 11,000 points in both Monaco and Spain, finishing her season with four wins out of five and setting a record for the highest score by a female in professional competition. In arguably the best form of her career, Lang has won seven out of nine professional events over the last two seasons, including a World Championship, Pan American Games, and an extension of her world trick record.

On the men’s side, 2024 has been anything but predictable, with intense competition in one of the fastest-evolving fields in the sport. The Chileans dominated the European leg, with 16-year-old Matias Gonzalez claiming his second win of the season in Monaco and 18-year-old Martin Labra following up his Masters title with a win in Spain.

The European leg continues through July, with the 10th edition of the San Gervasio ProAm (July 5-7), the inaugural Oxfordshire ProAm (July 12-13), and the first stop of the WWS Overall Tour for 2024, the WWS Salmsee Cup (July 27-28).