GRANBURY, Texas (AP) — Just one week after Canadian water skier Neilly Ross set a pending world record, Erika Lang has reclaimed her status as the world’s highest-scoring women’s tricks skier, achieving an impressive 11,450 points at the Timber Cove Record Tournament in Granbury, Texas.
Lang’s score surpasses the current record of 11,360 and edges past Ross’ pending 11,380-point run, potentially restoring the American’s position at the top of the sport. This comeback follows a remarkable week of intense competition and record-breaking, with Lang adapting her strategy after observing Ross’ innovative hand sequence.
Lang’s world record run
“11,450 points!! So excited to have set a pending World Record at the Timber Cove Record Tournament,” Lang shared after her performance. Her response highlights the fierce, fast-paced competition in women’s tricks skiing, where top athletes continually push the boundaries at each tournament.
Ross, 22, had made headlines just days earlier by setting the pending record in West Palm Beach, Florida. Her 11,380-point score was celebrated for its technical precision, featuring an innovative hand run that split her six flips into a series of wake spins and ski line tricks.
Lang, who also competed at the Okeeheelee tournament in pursuit of a world record, seems to have replicated Ross’ record-breaking run, learning and perfecting the sequence in the few days between the two events.
If ratified, Ross’ record would end Lang’s eight-year streak as record-holder, marking a potential passing of the torch in women’s tricks. However, Lang’s recent achievement could keep her at the forefront of the sport.
The escalating rivalry between Lang and Ross brings renewed excitement to the sport, with each record-setting performance intensifying the competition. Both scores are currently pending review from the International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Canadian water skier Neilly Ross set a pending world record in women’s tricks with a score of 11,380 points at the Okeeheelee 3-Event Record Tournament this weekend, surpassing the current record by 20 points. If approved, Ross’s score would end U.S. skier Erika Lang’s eight-year streak as the record-holder, potentially marking a shift in the competitive landscape of women’s tricks skiing.
“11,380!! Well, I can’t believe I’m saying this right now, but today I set a pending world record!” Ross exclaimed on social media following the event. “For 16 years, I have put every ounce of effort into the dream of one day achieving this.”
Ross’ world record run
The record-setting run features an innovative hand sequence, in which Ross splits her six flips down the middle to perform a series of wake spins and ski line tricks. However, it’s her toe run that truly sets her apart, breaking 5,000 points—a rare feat for a female trick skier.
Ross, the youngest of the elite trio of Lang, Anna Gay, and herself, has long been considered one of the sport’s top talents. While Lang and Gay have traded off the women’s tricks record since 2013, Ross’s record-breaking performance may signal a changing of the guard, with the young Canadian now pushing the boundaries in an event where she set numerous records through the junior ranks.
If approved by the International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation, Ross’s score would exceed Erika Lang’s current record of 11,360 set at the Travers LCQ in 2023.
Quiz: Every man to jump more than 70 meters (230 feet)
Image: Orlando Sentinel
By RTB
4 minute play
In this quiz, you need to name all the male skiers who have jumped more than 70 meters (230 feet).
The list has 18 skiers, all of whom belong to the exclusive club of skiers who have jumped 70 meters at least once in a world ranking tournament. The skier at top of the list has achieved the feat more than every other jumper combined. We have mentioned the number of jumps over 70 meters, as well as the country and top score.
Great Britain’s waterski superstar, Joel Poland, has done it again. His 6th Open Overall World Record has just been approved.
Joel Poland has now broken the Overall World Record more times than any other skier – male or female. Before his latest record was officially ratified, he had done it 5 times – more than any man and the same number as Natalia Berdnikava. Now he has surpassed them all with record number 6.
It’s his second record of 2024, both of them coming at Ski Fluid near Orlando in Florida, which is also where he set his very first record back in April 2021.
The latest official record was broken at the appropriately-named Fluid Fall Record tournament on 8 September. In round 2, Joel scored 6 at 10.75 metres in slalom, 12,160 points in tricks and jumped 69.8 metres. That amounts to 2686.34 points.
Joel went on to break the world record again just a couple of weeks later at the Travers Cup but that is still being reviewed by the IWWF, so watch this space.
Few would bet against Joel breaking the record again – and again. He has higher slalom and jump scores than those achieved for his 6th record and he has put in consistently strong performances across all three events throughout the season. At the weekend he was crowned Champion of the 2024 World Water Skiers (WWS) Overall Tour, having won all four stops.
And Joel is still only 25 years old!
Congratulations Joel. We can’t wait to see what you can do in 2025, which just happens to be a World Championships year.
Kennedy Hansen from the United States and Maise Jacobsen from Denmark have made history by setting new IWWF World Records in their respective age groups. Both records have now been officially ratified by the International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation (IWWF), solidifying their places as two of the sport’s brightest rising stars.
Kennedy Hansen Sets New Under-21 Women’s Overall World Record
Kennedy Hansen, the reigning Under-21 World Overall Champion, has set a new Under-21 Women’s Overall World Record. Her record-breaking performance occurred during the first round of the We Wave Independence Day Invitational at Bullneck Lake, Scott, Arkansas, on July 5-6, 2024.
Hansen’s incredible overall score was achieved through stellar performances across all three disciplines:
Slalom: 1 buoy at 10.75 meters (39.5′ off)
Tricks: 9,430 points
Jump: 44.4 meters (146 feet)
These impressive results helped Hansen surpass the previous Under-21 overall record, a milestone previously held by her compatriot Brooke Baldwin.
Expressing her gratitude after her achievement, Hansen said, “Thanks to my family, coaches, Team Pickos, Alex Gschiel, and my sponsors for all the support along the way. This wouldn’t have been possible without you all!”
In addition to this record, Hansen has two more Under-21 Overall Records pending approval from the IWWF.
Maise Jacobsen Breaks Under-17 Girl’s Jump Record
Denmark’s Maise Jacobsen has also etched her name in the waterskiing history books by setting a new Under-17 Girls Jump World Record with an incredible leap of 46.9 meters (154 feet). This remarkable feat was accomplished during the finals of the 2024 IWWF E&A Youth Championships in Recetto, Italy, on August 25, 2024.
Jacobsen’s latest success adds to her growing list of accolades. Earlier this year, she was crowned Junior World Jump Champion at the IWWF World Under-17 Waterski Championships held at Predator Bay, Calgary, Canada.
After breaking the world record, Jacobsen expressed her excitement and appreciation on social media, saying, “Thank you to everyone who has been part of my journey to make one of my biggest dreams come true. I am forever grateful. I had a lot of fun with old and new friends as always, and I’m already looking forward to next year!”
Not only is Jacobsen’s new record officially approved, but it also ties the longest jump by an Under-17 girl in the past 15 years, matching Lauren Morgan’s best performance from 2010. Even more impressive is that Jacobsen still has another full year of eligibility in the Under-17 category.
A New Era of Junior Waterski Records
Both Hansen’s and Jacobsen’s achievements represent a new era for junior waterskiing records. The IWWF has been officially tracking age-group world records since 2019, expanding the recognition of outstanding performances beyond just junior world championships (Under-17 and Under-21). This system allows remarkable accomplishments like Hansen’s and Jacobsen’s to be cemented in the sport’s history, shining a spotlight on the future stars of waterskiing.
Joel Poland isn’t just having a good run of form; he’s redefining what is possible in the sport of water skiing. The 25-year-old Englishman had as close to a flawless weekend of water skiing as perhaps anyone in the sport has ever had, breaking the overall world record in both the preliminary and final rounds, taking home yet another professional victory and the season championship on the WWS Overall Tour to cap things off.
Last year, during the final stop of the WWS Overall Tour, Poland broke the world overall record, his first in two years, and the first time a world record had been broken in a professional tournament since 2005. Since that fateful day, it’s been as if a floodgate has opened. He broke the record again two weeks later at the Malibu Open, again in the spring at Fluid, and then, in one of the most remarkable runs ever in the sport, he exceeded the current record over three consecutive rounds—including in both the preliminary and final rounds of the WWS Travers Cup last weekend.
To be clear, not all of these performances will be recorded as official records. Poland’s scores from the Fluid Fall Record are marginally higher than his two pending records from Sunset Lakes, which will only be considered if the first performance is denied upon review. But all three exceed the current world record, set by Poland back in April.
Spare a thought for his competitors. While Louis Duplan-Fribourg, Dorien Llewellyn, and Martin Kolman have all been in incredible form this season, they are tasked with competing against a guy who is breaking world records at a consistency and pace unheard of in the history of the sport.
To put it in context, the entire podium from the finals of the WWS Travers Cup—Joel, Louis, and Dorien—recorded scores higher than Jaret Llewellyn’s “unbreakable” overall record, which stood from 2002 to 2017. Even Martin Kolman, who finished in fourth place, wasn’t far off the pace. The former World Champion recorded a personal best in jump and one of his best-ever overall scores, yet still couldn’t make the podium.
The level of skiing was off the charts all weekend. Highlights included a pending under-17 world record from Jake Abelson, a new French national jump record from Duplan-Fribourg, and countless personal and season bests.
But none of it was enough to threaten Poland, who managed scores midway through 10.25m (41 off), over 12,000 points in tricks, and jumps in the high 60s (220s) across both rounds of the tournament—truly world-class performances in all three events.
We are witnessing something very special indeed. Don’t look away for a minute.
The recently concluded Fluid Fall Record tournament in Central Florida lived up to its reputation, with several impressive performances and records broken. Although the event is an amateur competition, the shores of the lake were lined with professional water skiers, all vying for big scores at one of the world’s premier ski sites.
Among the standout performances was Joel Poland, who potentially set his sixth world overall record. The British skier delivered a remarkable round that included 1.5 buoys at 10.25 meters (41’ off) in slalom, a trick score of 12,160 points, and a jump distance of 69.8 meters (229 feet). This marks Poland’s fourth world record in the past 12 months. Leading the Waterski Pro Tour in jump and remaining undefeated in the WWS Overall Tour, Poland appears unstoppable.
Poland shared on Instagram that he almost didn’t compete in the tournament, saying “This was a real last minute event, I signed up on Thursday, i just had a feeling this weekend could be the one. 3 days later, another pending world record and legs that feel like stone. No regrets 🤘 I’ll take every opportunity I can get!”
In the tricks category, Nelly Ross of Canada set a pending national trick record with a score of 11,230 points, just 130 points shy of the current world record held by Erika Lang. While there are no major trick events remaining for the 2024 season, Ross’s performance signals that the level of competition in women’s tricks is continually rising.
Meanwhile, Hanna Straltsova set a new personal best with a leap of 58.7 meters (193 feet), further solidifying her status as the best jumper in the world right now. Straltsova, who already leads the Waterski Pro Tour, is now outright the second-farthest female jumper of all time, behind Jacinta Carroll. Previously, Straltsova shared the second position with Natallia Berdnikava, but her latest achievement sets her apart in a class of her own.
Another rising star, Martin Labra, the 2024 Masters trick champion, demonstrated his growing potential with a pending Chilean overall record. Labra posted scores of 5 buoys at 11.25 meters (38’ off) in slalom, 12,190 points in tricks, and a jump of 63.1 meters (207 feet). The performance marks a significant milestone for Labra, as he overtakes his uncle, two-time world overall champion Felipe Miranda. Labra is shaping up to be a strong contender in men’s overall in the coming seasons.
Though not breaking any records, Regina Jaquess delivered another remarkable performance, setting only the second score in 2024 past two buoys at 10.25 meters (41’ off)—both scores belonging to Jaquess. The American skier is still in pursuit of becoming the first woman to run the full pass, with her current best standing at 5 buoys.
With six professional events remaining in 2024, including slalom, jump, and overall, the competition is heating up for what promises to be an exciting finish to the season.
Note: the original version of this article incorrectly listed Straltsova’s jump as a pending European record.
Joel Poland’s world overall record, set at the Ski Fluid Classic in April 2024, was officially ratified by the IWWF yesterday, marking his fifth world overall record in three years. The three-event superstar now has the distinction of breaking the most world overall records since official records began in the mid-1990s. He overtakes Regina Jaquess (four) and Patrice Martin, Elena Milakova, and Natallia Berdnikava (three each) with his five world records set between April 2021 and 2024.
His latest mark – 1 @ 10.25m (41’ off), 11,680 points, and 70.3 meters (231 feet) – was just three overall points higher than his previous record set at the 2023 Malibu Open and is still significantly below Poland’s personal bests in both slalom and trick, where he has previously run 10.25m and tricked over 12,000 points.
If the Brit can pull off the perfect round while he is in his current form across all three events, he will have the opportunity to set a generational record, one that will stand the test of time – similar to Jaret Llewellyn’s mark from 2002 which took 15 years for any man to best, or Berdnikava’s mark from 2012 which still stands to this day.
Arguably the hardest record in the sport to break, requiring near perfection in a single round of competition, Poland’s achievements are already historic. With four professional overall events, four jump events, and plenty more slalom events (if he chooses to attend), Poland will look to add more professional titles to his already impressive resume through the second half of 2024.
The year is 2011. Barack Obama is in his first term as US President, LMFAO’s “Party Rock Anthem” is at the top of the charts, and the iPhone has just become the most popular smartphone in the world. In the world of tournament water skiing, the brand new Nautique 200 is in its second year of production, and a 31-year-old Belarusian is challenging one of the longest-held records in the sport.
On the same day that Prince William and Kate Middleton tied the knot, Aliaksei “Ace” Zharnasek tricked 12,570 points at a record tournament at Lake Hancock in Florida, breaking Nicolas Le Forestier’s decade-long hold on the men’s trick record.
Until 18 months ago, Zharnasek’s mark seemed unassailable. The only skier to come close was Ace himself, who, during one remarkable period, set five pending records from 2015 to 2017. However, each application was rejected by the IWWF after review, where every trick record is subject to immense scrutiny.
Fast forward to 2022. At 42, Zharnasek, now an all time great, has faded into retirement, and the new kid on the block is young Patricio Font from Mexico. On the eve of Halloween, Font eked out an extra 20 points to break the longest-standing open record in the sport, which had stood for 11.5 years.
Since then, it has been as if the floodgates have opened. Font has started to consistently score in the high 12,000s, and a new generation of trick skiers is starting to push up toward 13,000 points. How has the most stagnant event in water skiing, with only a single record broken from 2005 to 2022, suddenly become one of the most competitive and fastest-evolving fields in the sport? To find out, we spoke to skiers at the forefront of this evolution.
With a water ski pedigree that includes two elite-level skiers as parents and none other than Patricio Font as his cousin, this American-Canadian-Mexican teenager has had a stratospheric rise through the first half of 2024. He broke 12,000 points for the first time to clinch a runner-up finish at the Swiss Pro Tricks and followed that up with two world record-setting performances over the next month.
Abelson draws inspiration from a variety of sources: the speed and efficiency of Font’s hand pass, the boundary-pushing tricks of Joel Poland, and the blistering pace of Matias Gonzalez and Martin Labra’s toe tricking, to name a few. Far from occurring overnight, the sudden rise in trick scores is the product of “the collective knowledge” of generations of skiers and coaches who have laid the blueprint.
With other skiers demonstrating what is possible, the process becomes relatively straightforward. “At a high level, more speed is required to add another trick or upgrade an existing one,” shared Abelson. For him, this has meant “learning to perform my runs at a higher pace without losing composure, as well as building the endurance necessary to trick at a high level for the entire 20 seconds.” On his signature wake-seven-front, “I spent the winter practicing and repeating” to fit that trick in time.
Perhaps no skier moves faster on a trick ski than the young Chilean, the current Under-17 World Champion and winner of the 2024 Swiss Pro Tricks. Gonzalez’s toe run plays out like a sped up tape, and now with a whole host of ski line tricks added to his repertoire over the winter he is ready to challenge the best of the best.
“To consistently trick over 12k, the most important thing for me was to focus on speed,” shared Gonzalez. He too is following in the footsteps of those who paved the way before him, learning from past legends such as Cory Pickos and more recent stars like Patricio Font. “Pato showed that 11 tricks on hands were possible, that set the new standard for everyone coming up.”
The two-time world champion and former world record holder’s résumé would be impressive for any skier, doubly so for one so young. Patricio Font has been the standard bearer for this new generation of trick skiers, breaking a slew of records on his way up through the junior ranks.
Speaking on how trick skiing has evolved even during his tenure at the top of the sport, Font attributed recent gains to everyone pushing the field higher and higher. He shared on the TWBC podcast, “I think now trick skiing has changed so that to win, you kind of have to do the world record or come close to it because you’ve got everyone chasing behind you.”
The Chilean three-event phenom has forged a different path to the top of the tricking world, earning comparatively more points through toe tricks than many of his contemporaries. With innovations like the ‘reverse’ toe-wake-five-back and his metronomic efficiency and speed, Labra is now the highest scoring toe tricker in living memory. Fresh off his victory at the 2024 US Masters, the most decorated skier in the history of the Under-17 Worlds is ready to make his presence felt on the professional circuit.
“In my case, what helped me a lot was being with Mati [Gonzalez] since we were like 4 and 2,” shared Labra, who credits close competition with other rising stars in the sport for the dramatic rise in trick scores. “I think we helped each other to be better… we started pushing ourselves to a better level.” Labra emphasized that this is not solely about competition, but also about camaraderie and friendship. “Starting to know each other and be close to each other helped in a good way to improve the scores in tricking”
While the proliferation of Latin American trick skiers among the elite ranks is undoubtedly one of the key storylines of the past few years, one skier is working hard to maintain France’s historical dominance in the event. The current world overall champion, Duplan-Fribourg, is perhaps the most well-rounded of the new generation of trick skiers. Capable of both a hand run over 7,000 points and a toe run at 5,500, there doesn’t appear to be any weaknesses in the Frenchman’s routine.
“New trick combinations [are the key] for me,” shared Duplan-Fribourg. This includes both following successful trends, such as the now-ubiquitous mobe-mobe-half jack sequence, and thinking outside the box, like adopting the unconventional “French” run, which seamlessly intersperses big-ticket ski line tricks with a front flip in the middle. Ultimately, it is all about finding sequences that work for you. His other key: speed in toes. For Louis, that is what makes or breaks a 12k trick run.
Jake Abelson’s world trick record of 12,970 has now been officially approved by the IWWF, bringing the sport to the precipice of 13,000 points. This incredible achievement caps off one of the most rapid ascents in water skiing history, with 16-year-old Abelson transforming from a promising junior to the highest-scoring tricker of all time in just a matter of weeks.
In mid-April, Abelson’s personal best was just shy of 12,000 points, ranking him 6th in the world for Open Men Tricks. At the Swiss Pro Tricks, he set solid scores to qualify for the finals mid-pack before achieving a new personal best of 12,230 points—a US National record. This score secured him a runner-up finish, his second of the year following a photo finish at the Moomba Masters.
The following weekend, Abelson improved his personal best by another 500 points, setting a new world record of 12,720 at the Ski Fluid Classic. This marked the first time an American man held the world trick record since Cory Pickos’ last mark 24 years earlier.
Fast forward another two weeks, and Abelson continued his ascent, setting yet another world record with 12,970 points. Over the span of just three weeks, the 16-year-old lifted his personal best by a full 1,000 points, increasing the world trick record by 280 points—equivalent to the combined progress in the 17.5 years between Nicolas Le Forestier’s last record and Patricio Font’s most recent one.
Abelson further intensified his run in the 2nd round of the Masters Qualifying event, swapping in a ski line seven back (SL7B) for his ski line back-to-back (SLBB). He fell on his last two tricks in that round, but had he landed them, the score would have been another 300 points higher than his current record, comfortably surpassing 13,000 points.
This proof of concept, with both falls occurring in time, shows that it is likely only a matter of time before Abelson or another skier cracks 13k. While Abelson’s record hand run of 7,670 is the highest of all time, there are other skiers with better marks on toe. The Chilean duo of Martin Labra and Matias Gonzalez hold the two highest toe runs in living memory at 5,680 and 5,600 points, respectively.
The men’s trick field, much like slalom, is the most competitive it has been in a long time, with three separate winners across the first three professional events of 2024. With such a large group of skiers capable of tricking in excess of 12,000 points, it is no longer possible for the top seeds to play it safe. Each skier must push as close to the world record as possible to win at any given event.
