ONE OF THE BEST WORLD CUP SITES TO DATE DELIVERS EXCITING CONCLUSION TO 2010 SEASON Stars of Florida join World Cup Stop The City of Chuncheon in north east South Korea has reason to feel proud today. As the hosts of the 1st World Leisure Games with 12,600 athletes and 42 Disciplines from 50 countries involved, the first major international Final was completed yesterday in style. Organised by the Korea Waterski & Wakeboard Association (KWWA) and the International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation (IWWF), this 30th Stop of the IWWF World Cup series attracted the highest ranked athletes from 14 countries and a large spectator gallery. Chuncheon World Cup Control Tower This 30th World Cup Stop took place on the magnificent lake in the centre of the official 1st World Leisure Games Village,...

DAY OF HECTIC PRACTICE AND GREAT OPENING CEREMONIES FOCUSES ATTENTION ON THE  WORLD CUP Spectators crowd the World Cup grandstand for Practice ! While thousands of athletes poured in to the World Leisure Games Village here on site in Chuncheon, Korea, our Riders and Skiers had a very busy day of Practice on the water. A few had flight delay problems but most were able to have some time on the calm water and settle down for the great challenge ahead on Sunday and Monday. The Preliminary Rounds for both Riders and Skiers start at 08.00hrs tomorrow, Sunday. Korean World Cup Fans enjoying the day The first major Opening Ceremony was our own World Cup Ceremony on the very elaborate stage constructed at the edge of Lake Uiam, just in front of the large four storey glass Judges and Media Tower....

FINAL PREPARATIONS COMPLETED AS SKIERS AND RIDERS ARRIVE FROM AROUND THE WORLD Judges Tower overlooking the Jump Ramp The timing of this 30th World Cup Stop is a little unusual as it will take place on Sunday and Monday, with Official Practice on Saturday, tomorrow. The immediate impression is one of excellence. When Nigel Talamo, the official World Cup Homologator arrived, he was pleasantly surprised to see that the Courses prepared on the water by the Korea Waterski & Wakeboard Association were perfect ! As all in our sport know, this is a major achievement. On the other hand, South Korea has over 600 Waterski and Wakeboard Clubs and an enormous depth of experience. The benefits of that experience show on all levels. Both the  CEO of the World Leisure Games and the Mayor of Chuncheon...

WOMEN’S WORLD JUMP RECORD TAKEN BY DENMARK’S JUNE FLADBORG World Record for June Fladborg For some time now, Denmark’s June Fladborg has been almost the only Jumper who looked like she could break the 2002 World Record of 56.6m set by Elena Milakova Thomsen. She gets more speed on to the Ramp than anybody right now but that makes perfect timing all the more difficult and that has been her recent challenge. Last weekend she took the Europe Africa Jump title at London’s Thorpe Park and then moved on to the nearby Cray Valley ProAm. That was where she made history. Moment of truth ! June’s Jump set kicked off with a distance of 50.5m – and looked promising. Jump number two was 49.8m and so 50.5m looked like it might be the best of the day. However,...

WORLD CUP SKIERS AND RIDERS FROM 17 COUNTRIES TO JOIN ATHLETES FROM ANOTHER 33 COUNTRIES IN KOREA AT THE END OF AUGUST World Leisure Games and the World Cup site It’s World Cup time again ! The Waterski and Wakeboard World Cup series will celebrate the staging of its 30th Stop in the picturesque 1,000 year-old City of ChunCheon. This is  located in the north east corner of South Korea and takes place on August 29th / 30th. This host City of the first ever World Leisure Games will welcome over 13,000 athletes from 50 countries, scheduled to compete in 15 different sports at this major international inaugural event. ChunCheon City is also a perfect location for this 30th anniversary of the Waterski & Mt.Gubong and ChunCheon City Wakeboard World Cup. It is surrounded by lakes on...

ALEX LAURETANO IN OUR WORLD CUP INTERVIEW SPOTLIGHT Alex Lauretano USA - an outstanding athlete In the past year, three-event Waterskier Alex Lauretano USA has been one of the most consistent performers of the season. This is no coincidence. This third generation Lauretano athlete was born in Bristol, Connecticut in 1988. At just 17 years of age, she was already the Can Am Slalom, Tricks, Jump and Overall Champion. In 2006, she moved on to be the Junior US Masters Jump Champion plus the USA National Jump, Trick and Overall Champion. In 2008, she took the U21 Pan Am Trick, Jump, Slalom and Overall titles – plus the title of the World University Tricks Champion. It is hard to believe that Alex has still not reached the age of 21 with so much success achieved. Her long hours of training with...

INJURIES FOR SOME WORLD CUP STARS – LATEST UPDATES Since our last Waterski World Cup Stop in Dubna, Russia, a great deal has happened in the lives of our athletes. As is often the case in major international competition, injuries are part of the mix no matter how good the preparations. As we now approach our next World Cup Stop in Liuzhou, China on October 1/3, some will have to miss this next World Cup adventure. Narie Vympranietsova and Ageliki Andriopoulou with Akeliki's mother Cristiana in Calgary The current two-time Ladies World Jump Champion, Ageliki Andriopoulou GRE, has had an ongoing knee problem for some time which came to a head after the 2009 Calgary World Championships. The good news is that she has already had successful surgery and expects to be back to full fitness...

CHALLENGING WET START TO THE 2009 CALGARY WATERSKI WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS AT PREDATOR BAY WSC IN ALBERTA CANADA The past 24 hours here in Calgary have reminded us all that we are indeed involved in an outdoor sport ! Once the official Practice time ended on Monday evening in reasonably good weather conditions, all were settling in to the prospect of a warm week ahead. The site is magnificent, the organization is first class and the entertainment for the athletes and officials last night at Calgary’s Lynnwood Ranch set a very friendly tone. Seeing our Skiers in Cowboy hats and enjoying the Square Dance routines certainly helped to settle the nerves. This morning we awoke to black clouds, 12C temperatures and the likelihood of a very wet day. In fact, the rain has continued from dawn and...

WORLD CUP STARS TAKING ON WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS CHALLENGE NEXT WEEK Calgary Canada will be the target for many of our World Cup Waterski athletes for the coming week. Now that our successful Dubna Russia World Cup Stop has been completed, we are now likely to see many of the World Championships titles captured by our World Cup stars – and we will bring you all that news here over the week. For the past few weeks, Calgary’s own Jaret Llewellyn The Jock Wilson Radio Showhas been the subject of a whole range of Radio, TV and Newspaper focus. He has worked tirelessly to ensure that the 2009 World Waterski Championships will attract a record number of spectators. This blitz continued tonight when he and IWSF Media Chairman Des Burke-Kennedy were interviewed by the famous Sports Radio...

JARET SURVIVES AWESOME CRASH WITH SOME BRUISES Jaret and the Mayor of Dubna, Valery Prokh Jaret recovering in the World Cup MasterCraft It was just at the tail end of a magnificent World Cup Stop in Dubna Russia. The sun was hot, the 10,000 cheering spectators were enjoying the final Jump spectacle. Jaret was in a jump-off with his Canadian buddy Ryan Dodd. He had to beat 66.4m to take the title from Ryan. There was a very slight tail breeze. Jaret decided to really kick his first attempt. Nothing new about that. He was just a shade early on to the Ramp. Coming off, that left ski began to dip – and then this sequence below followed ……. Big Trouble Ahead ! Point Of No Return Going Down ! Jaret is sore tonight. Very sore. Thankfully, nothing seems to be broken and he is as ever...