JUNE FLADBORG, CHRIS PARRISH, WILL ASHER AND KAREN TRUELOVE SET THE PACE Today we were treated to a first glimpse of which Waterski athletes show real potential to dominate this season in both Slalom and Jump – and our World Cup Stars again played a major role in the results so far..  With several surprises and some outstanding performances, there were times when it felt like Finals day instead of just Round One here in Melbourne! Regina Jaquess USA in action today Channel 7 TV broadcast their Sunrise Show live from the Moomba HQ on the Yarra River bank and then the day began with Womens Slalom. Under overcast skies and warm air, the slight tail river current caught a few skiers by surprise.  With 22 athletes chasing 12 places in the next round, the pressure on the Series 2 skiers was...

ALL SET FOR THE 50th MOOMBA MASTERS ON MELBOURNE’S DOWNTOWN YARRA RIVER Jonathan Travers USA, Natalia Berdnikava BLR and Ryan Dodd CAN In making the final arrangements for the historical  50th Moomba Masters today, the team went home tonight with everything ready for an 08.00hrs start here on Friday morning. With the last Skiers and Riders arriving at the Airport from all over the world, the Junior Moomba completed and the Running Order sheets posted, the Open categories had an early night tonight before the battle for titles begins in earnest tomorrow. Sergio Font and Gustavo Monroy MEX and Javier Julio ARG There were some late announcements today. World Cup star Jaret Llewellyn CAN will not be with us to defend his Moomba Jump title due to a recurring arm injury. World Tricks Champion,...

STAR MONDAY – NATALIA BERDNIKAVA ON CAMERA TODAY World Record Holder in Shortboard / Tricks, Natalia Berdnikava, is the second in our regular World Cup interview series here in this Star Monday edition. This World Cup star was born in Novopolotsk in Belarus, the city which  also produced World Cup stars Aliaksei Zharnasek and Herman Beliakou. As with World Cup Wakeboard Champion Dallas Friday, Natalia also started her athletic career as a Gymnast. For the perfectionists out there, her family name is Berdnikava in Belarus and Berdnikova in Russia ! Natalia Berdnikava in Star Monday Video Natalia set the extraordinary World Record record of 9080 points just last season and spends much of her time these days training at the famous Jack Travers Sunset Lakes Ski School in Okahumpka in Central...

FIRST REPORT DIRECTLY FROM KYLE EADE IN NEW ZEALAND It seems just a few days since we received the shocking news from Murray Eade, Kyle’s father, of his accident while training for this week’s 50th Moomba Masters on the Jump Ramp. Since then, almost SIX THOUSAND fans have sent goodwill messages to Kiwi on the CaringBridge site and this just shows how much he is respected and admired around the World. KIWI SENDS FIRST REPORT We have tonight received a report actualy written by Kiwi himself – and as you read the details below, you will see that he is already well on the road to recovery, even if it may be a long road. All in our World Cup team wish Kyle continuing steady progress and we will all certainly be thinking of him at the 50th Moomba Masters in Melbourne next weekend. REPORT...

STAR MONDAY  – UP CLOSE WITH A DIFFERENT WORLD CUP STAR EVERY MONDAY O.K., so today is Tuesday, but from this week on we will bring you an exclusive interview with some of our greatest World Cup Stars here on our World Cup Home Page – EVERY Monday. This will be a unique opportunity to get some fascinating insights from the very best Athletes in the World in our sport. We selected Monday as this is the day when the greatest number of our World Cup fans check out our latest updates. The World Cup Stars selected include almost all those mega stars we see in the headlines. Some you may never have seen on camera before. All will bring you closer to their great talents and interests. To find out who they are, just bookmark our Home Page here and remember to visit us EVERY Star Monday...

WORLD CUP STARS PREPARE FOR 50th MOOMBA MASTERS AS INJURY HALTS WORLD RECORD HOLDER Melbourne, Australia is about to roll out the red carpet for the 50th Moomba Masters Waterski and Wakeboard  Championships – and what a celebration it promises to be. Launched in 1960 on the downtown Yarra River, this is always a spectacular event against the backdrop of the city Skyscrapers. The action will kick off on Wednesday March 3rd for the Juniors and the Big Guns will start their battle for the prestigious 50th medals on Friday, March 5th.  As ever, the Finals will be on the holiday Monday. We will have a full on-site report and photos for you right here on our Website. Our World Cup Stars will be in Melbourne in real strength this year, in one of the strongest fields seen for a long time. A total...

KYLE EADE – UPDATE FRIDAY 19th FEBRUARY We have just received this message from New Zealand from Murray Eade, World Cup Star Kyle’s father, with a very moving summary of the past week. Very soon, Kyle will have access to a Laptop and will be able to see the extraordinary number of good wishes from all his many friends around the world. A total of 3,487 messages have already been posted on http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/kyleeade  Scot and Roger Ellis have also done a wonderful job on  http://www.skifly.com in setting up a Trust Fund to help contribute to the unavoidable costs facing the family. Ryan and Sarah Green have also set up a fund in Australia. This global generosity is just another reminder of what a great sport we have and how thoughtful so many people are when one of...

ASIAN BEACH GAMES 2010 TO INCLUDE WATERSKI & WAKEBOARD Muscat Games 2010 The Asian Beach Games are what are known as Multi-Sport Games – similar to the PanAm Games and the Mediterranean Games. The first Asian Beach Games were staged in Bali, Indonesia in 2008 with athletes from 41 Countries. The 2nd Games will be held in Muscat in the Sultanate of Oman – just south of Qatar and the UAE on the Arabian Gulf and 45 Countries plan to participate this time. The dates are December 8/16 2010 and at that time the expected temperatures will be around 25C / 80Fh. Muscat on Arabian Gulf The Sultanate of Oman has a population of just over 3 million people with a strong Economy based on Oil and Gas. This will be the largest sporting event ever staged in the country. A spectacular purpose...

KYLE EADE (NZL) SHOWS EARLY POSITIVE SIGNS OF RECOVERY Kiwi behins to respond to treatment Some good news from New Zealand. We have just received this report below from the family of Kyle Eade who was injured in a freak Jump crash while training last Friday. All his family are with him now and have been very well looked after by the Hospital and friends. The CaringBridge Website page opened just two days ago to provide Kyle’s friends with an easy way to send messages of support has already recived over 1400 contacts. While our sport is a relatively safe one, it is great to see such a worldwide response from Kyle’s many friends and supporters. He is certainly one of our most liked and respected World Cup Stars and we all wish him a speedy recovery. MESSAGE FROM KYLE’S FAMILY 5pm...

ANAKIN ALI MAKES HISTORY IN PUTRAJAYA Putrajaya Maritime Centre It is not often that a young athlete aged eight years and six months makes history. This is the happy news from Putrajaya, Malaysia. Young Anakin Ali landed his first jump at the Putrajaya Maritime Centre where Malaysia’s athletes of the future have been based over the past year.  This is no small achievement. Following the staging of the successful Waterski World Cup Stop in 2008, the Malaysia Water Ski Federation (MWSF) set about creating a comprehensive programme to develop Waterskiers and Riders in a very professional way. Young Anakin has now proved that the World Cup legacy has major benefits. Congratulations to Anakin and the Malaysia Water Ski Federation. For our World Cup team, this is also great news. One of...