This was the last Stop of a hectic global tour for the World’s best Waterskiers and Wakeboard Riders. Following the start of the ambitious adventure which began in France six months ago, the battle for World Cup titles continued through Russia, Great Britain, China, Singapore and now Doha on the Arabian Gulf in Qatar. Special challenges faced the International Waterski Federation on this occasion. The Jump Ramp was transported from the USA. MasterCraft, the official towboat sponsors, shipped three competition boats from the U.K. Officials from Great Britain, Germany and Italy took responsibility for setting up the competition courses – and the Qatar Marine Sport Federation took charge of the detailed local organization. Athletes from eleven countries filled the starting lists. In conjunction...

The waiting is over. It has been a long journey across Europe, Russia, Asia and the Arabian Gulf. The World’s best Waterski and Wakeboard athletes from eleven countries are now preparing in Doha, Qatar, for the hectic schedule which will decide who will become the 2004 World Cup champions. Depending on local weather conditions, the programme is as follows : WATERSKI & WAKEBOARD WORLD CUP PROGRAMME THURSDAY, December 9th – Familiarisation FRIDAY, December 10th 09.00 am Slalom preliminaries 11.00 am Jump preliminaries 14.00 pm Wakeboard preliminaries 16.00 pm Trick preliminaries SATURDAY, December 11th 10.00 am Slalom Finals 11.00 am Jump Finals 12.00 am Wakeboard Semi-Finals 14.00 pm Trick Finals 15.00 pm Wakeboard Finals Tonight the temperature has dropped to 20C / 68Fh along...

It has been an epic and thrilling journey. The 2004 Waterski and Wakeboard World Cup circumnavigation included Stops in France, Russia, Great Britain, China and Singapore. Up to 32,000 spectators turned out in force at individual Stops. The stage is now set for a spectacular conclusion on the sun drenched shores of the Arabian Gulf in the oil and gas rich country of Qatar. The December 10/12 event will present the much awaited final battle for the 2004 World Cup titles in Slalom, Tricks, Jump and Wakeboard. Only the very best have qualified. With a civilization dating back over 4,000 years, Qatar is full of surprises. Strong historical links exist with not only the surrounding Arab nations, but also with Portugal, Britain and even the Ottoman Empire. Doha, the capital on the palm tree-lined...

The 2004 Waterski and Wakeboard World Cup has so far successfully completed Stops in Paris, Moscow / Dubna, London, Shanghai / Changshu, – and now Singapore. Only Doha in Qatar remains in early December. This HSBC Wakeboard Singapore Stop was historic. In bringing Wakeboard and Waterskiing to high population downtown venues, the International Waterski Federation has attracted very large audiences throughout the year. Singapore went one step further. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Singapore’s current Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, surprised many by granting permission to the Singapore Waterski and Wakeboard Federation to use the downtown fresh water Bedok Reservoir for this major international event. No such permission has ever been granted to any organisation before. This...

Finding suitable downtown locations for the six 2004 Waterski and Wakeboard World Cup Stops has been an absolute priority for the International Waterski Federation. Bringing the excitement to the audience has been the key focus and underpins the success of the event this year. On October 30/31, 40 of the Worlds best Wakeboard Riders will compete in Singapore in the HSBC Wakeboard World Cup Stop. At a special Press Conference in Singapore, the Public Utilities Board made a dramatic announcement in the past few days. While recognizing that safe water consumption remains a priority, Yap Kheng Guan, PUB Director, announced that the HSBC Wakeboard World Cup Stop will be staged at Singapore’s Bedok Reservoir, close to the downtown area. ‘We welcome ideas to liven up the Reservoirs but...

As we now approach the closing stages of the 2004 Wakeboard World Cup organized by the International Waterski Federation, final preparations are being made at the magnificent downtown site in Singapore. This Wakeboard World Cup Stop will take place there on October 30 / 31. HSBC, recently nominated the Global Bank of the Year 2004 by The Banker, has come on board as the title sponsor of the Singapore Stop. With 110 million customers, 230,000 staff, and 10,000 offices in 76 countries and territories, this is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organizations. HSBC is not new to involvements in major sporting activities. The HSBC Group used the Jaguar Team in Formula 1 to launch a new corporate identity, is the current sponsor of the World Match Play Golf Championships...

Sunny Seville in southern Spain witnessed the biggest ever World Wakeboard Championships organized by the World Wakeboard Council of the International Waterski Federation this weekend. In the build up on Thursday and Friday, the Qualifying Rounds saw the powerful 8.1 Litre MasterCraft X Star competition boat successfully complete a staggering total of 214 Rider performances across all the Heats. MasterCraft are the main sponsors of these World Championships. This is about as big as it gets ! The Guadalquiver River site which divides this historic City in two, provided all the facilities required for high level competition. With 171 Riders from 24 Countries eager to take home the titles, it was a fierce battle of the best from start to finish in this blockbuster 5th World Wakeboard Championships. Huge...

This has been a real roller coaster year for the sports of Wakeboard and Waterskiing. The launch of the Waterski and Wakeboard World Cup has taken the best athletes to France, Russia, Great Britain and China. Next to come are Singapore, USA and Qatar. Enormous crowds have witnessed the battle for the prestigious World Cup titles. Now we also have a chance to enjoy the spectacular stand-alone Wakeboard World Championships scheduled to take place in Seville in southern Spain next weekend. Warm Autumn air, Flamenco atmosphere and riverside dining, make this a perfect choice of venue. The Wakeboard World Championships of the International Waterski Federation have been hosted by very exotic locations in the past five years – France, South Africa, Brazil, Australia – and now Seville in Spain....

Following successful Stops of the Waterski and Wakeboard World Cup in France, Russia, and Great Britain, it was now time for China’s first Stop in Changshu – a short drive from last weekend’s Shanghai Formula 1 Grand Prix site. Athletes from 15 countries arrived on 31 Flights to continue their battle for a slice of the season’s $650,000 total cash prize. This first event in China was scheduled to include Slalom, Tricks and Jump. The programme listed one day for Practice, one for the Preliminaries and one for the Finals. Preparations at Lake Shang, located in manicured public park land, were impressive. Over 1km of advertising signs circled the entire arena. To cover the Stop, seven TV Companies with 22 cameras were on site. The estimated viewing audience for the two and a half hour...

Following last weekend’s spectacular Formula One Grand Prix, the Chinese Media are now heading for Changshu, just 45 minutes north of Shanghai. For the first time also, China will host a Stop of the Waterski World Cup, organised by the International Waterski Federation. Changshu, called ‘Heaven on Earth’, offers the perfect mixture of old and new. Gleaming Shopping Malls and luxury Villas sit side by side with traditional Pagodas and street markets. The Mediterranean type climate, exotic local cuisine of seafood and crabs and holiday atmosphere, set a perfect scene for this next Stop of the Waterski World Cup. Preparations at Lake Shang are impressive. A working party of 40 have installed over one kilometre of purpose designed bamboo panels around the entire waterski site...