PUTRAJAYA – The IWWF Waterski World Championships that is due to start from Aug 13-18 in Putrajaya promises a lot of thrilling excitement on the water.

Action on the water aside, the Malaysian Waterski and Wakeboard Federation (MWWF) is also going the extra mile to ensure that spectators and participants will enjoy a full package of entertainment at the Putrajaya Lake.

That is because a carnival – ‘Adventure Carnival’ – with food, live entertainment and fun for the whole family is being organized at the Water Sport Complex, Precinct 6 from Aug 15-18 that is in conjunction with the world meet.

With the water sport complex located just right next to the grand stands of the competition, it will be the perfect opportunity for families to jump into the fun whilst enjoying the world-level water skiing.

Apart from the various food and merchandise booths, a host of local celebrities such as Anne Abdullah, Zarina Zainuddin, Aidil Aziz and Zakiah Anas will also be making special appearances.

There will also be live musical performances by Ayu Damit, Shidi Data and Fredo Flybaits among others while clowns, stilt walkers and magicians will be making their rounds entertaining children.

An inflatable park and petting zoo will also be made available for younger children and there are games with prizes worth up RM12,000 are certain to keep the entire family entertained.

“The objective of the carnival is to encourage the public to come in droves to support our national team and the waterski sport in whole and at the same time to take this opportunity to indulge in the moment of food, fun, and excitement”, said MWWF vice president Alex Yoong.

The Malaysian team will be spearheaded by Aaliyah Yoong Hanifah and her two younger brothers – Aiden Yoong Hanifah and Adam Yoong Hanifah. The fourth member of the team is Nadiah Nasir.

A host of world class skiers have already confirmed their participation in this world meet with the likes of world champions Adam Pickos, Freddy Krueger and Regina Jaquess from the United States among the star attractions.

Other top skiers in the mix includes Canada’s Ryan Dodd, Neilly Ross, Belarus’ Aliaksei Zharnasek and Australia’s Jacinta Carroll.

The world meet is hosted and supported by the Putrajaya Corporation, the Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau, an agency under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, the Ministry of Youth and Sports and Nautique Boats USA.

The Adventure Carnival on the other hand is jointly organized by the Waterski & Wakeboard World Cup Sdn Bhd and AEM Adventure Events & Management PLT.
Admission is free for all spectators with the preliminary rounds to start from Tuesday, Aug 13 to Friday, Aug 16. The finals will be held on the Aug 17-18 weekend.

PUTRAJAYA – The 2019 IWWF Waterski World Championship that is slated to be held at the Putrajaya Lake from Aug 13-18 is about highlighting the individual expertise of top class waterskiers.

But unbeknownst to many, the real coveted title at the world meet is none other than the team title.

The team event is scored with each country putting forth a total of six skiers The team shall consist of a maximum of six skiers with the further limitation that no team may have more than four men or four women. The best three scores (men or women) of each discipline – slalom, tricks and jump will then be tallied for a total score.

This means that each skier that is entered for the team event is not only skiing for themselves, but also for their team as a slight mishap could prove costly at the end of the day.

And this year’s world meet is certainly a ‘Clash of the Titans’ for the team title with the top four teams – USA, Canada, France and Belarus all boasting championship pedigree for the team gold.

The United States, defending champions from the 2017 world meet, will certainly start as the favorites.

It is easy to see why as the Americans have named a power-packed lineup with all six members of their team a respective world champion in their own rights.

To lead, the US have two-time tricks world champion Adam Pickos and two-time jump world champion Freddy Krueger. The third male skier – Taylor Garcia is relatively younger but he himself is an under-21 world champion in slalom.

Additionally, they also have the services of Regina Jacques who has won the women’s slalom and overall world titles for three consecutive editions since 2013.

To round it up, they also have women’s 2013 tricks world champion Erika Lang and 2015 world champion Anna Gay as well. Thus truly making them the team to beat.

The Americans’ closest rivals will be Canada, who will be seeking to wrest the title they last won in 2015.

They are led by two-time men’s jump world champion Ryan Dodd, reigning women’s tricks world champion Neilly Ross and Whitney McClintock-Rini, a four-time world champion in all disciplines.

The other members in their team are Dorien Llewellyn, Stephen Neveu and Paige Rini, who is McClintock’s step-daughter.

France, who finished with silver in 2017, will be harder pressed to repeat that feat with a much younger squad.

But the European nation is not without talent as they have in their ranks Thibaut Dailland, a three-time European tricks champion and Pierre Ballon, an European tricks champion.

They also retain the experience of Manon Costard and are complemented by Emma Brunel, Louis Duplan Fribourg and Thibaut’s younger brother Tanguy.

Last but not least, Belarus who finished fourth two years ago, also should not be written off easily.

They have a lot of experience in Aliaksei Zharnasek. The 38-year-old is a three-time world champion and also happens to be the men’s record holder in tricks.

Additionally they also have the services of Natallia Berdnikava, a triple world champion in all disciplines as well.

The other members are Hanna Straltsova, Aliaksandra Danisheuskaya, Aliaksandr Isayeu and Stepan Shpak.

The world meet is hosted and supported by the Putrajaya Corporation, the Malaysia Convention  & Exhibition Bureau, an agency under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, the Ministry of Youth and Sports and Nautique Boats USA.

Admission is free for all spectators with the preliminary rounds to be held from Tuesday 13 to Friday 16 August 2019. The action packed finals will be held on the weekend of 17 & 18 August at at the world class Putrajaya Water Sports Complex in Precinct 6.

WITH less than two weeks to go before the start of the IWWF Waterski World Championship at Putrajaya, the final touches are being done to ensure the venue is brought up to world-level skiing condition.

The Malaysian Waterski and Wakeboard Federation (MWWF), in collaboration with Putrajaya Corporation (PPJ), have spent the last four weeks upgrading the ski site to ensure that skiers for the world meet from Aug 13-19 will have a smoother experience on the water.

The Putrajaya Lake is arguably one of the best ski sites in the world in terms of infrastructure.

The only setback, if any, is that the water condition there is not the best as the water tends to get rough and choppy from the winds, and also due to the backwash coming back to the ski course after each pass of the tow boat at the stadium site.

In order to minimize backwash, the MWWF, with the assistance of Putrajaya Corporation, have installed two significant upgrades at the ski site.

The first is the laying of rocks along the shoreline of the stadium.

This is to help boat wakes arriving on the shores have the energy removed and not come back into the ski course when the competition gets underway.

The second is the installation of a windbreaker system. It is made of hard wood in 34 segments linked together for a total of 150m long for the far end of the 350m long slalom course that is exposed to winds from east of the open area. The windbreaker system floats just above the water level of the lake and “kills” the waves created from the wind from crossing into the ski course.

This is the second major upgrade on the site which was improved once by implementing a backwash system on the vertical walls of the Marina Putrajaya during the 2017 Sea Games.

The IWWF representative, Larry Gisler, who will be the assistant chief judge for the World Championships, said the upgrades have certainly improved the Putrajaya waterski venue.

“I’ve been coming to Malaysia every year since 2008 and we have done a lot of upgrades for the Sea Games and now this world meet,” said the Chilean who has also served to develop Malaysian waterski and is coaching the Malaysian team prior to the start of the World Championships.

“The water becomes rough from wind conditions and backwash, so the rocks are in place to ensure that when the waves hit it, it stays there. This will make the surface of the water more calm.

“Right now we certainly have the best condition for the championships. I would say the site is now world record condition and it would be nice to see some world records broken in two weeks time,” he said.

Leading Malaysian waterskier, Aaliyah Yoong Hanifah gave her thumbs up at the upgrades done on the site.

“The ski site has definitely improved over the years. With the rocks and the windbreakers, there are now less rollers and the water is not as choppy as before,” said Aaliyah.

“Training-wise, I’ve been doing better since Larry got here. I think this will be a good tournament for the world’s top waterski athletes and I am certainly excited to set some new Malaysian records and maybe even get an Asian record or two.”

The 2019 IWWF Waterski World Championship is hosted by Putrajaya Corporation, and supported by Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau, an agency under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, the Ministry of Youth and Sports and Nautique Boats USA.