Seven athletes will represent Great Britain at the World Barefoot Water Ski Championships, which start next weekend. The competition is being held in Florida, USA, and there are big hopes for medals for Team GB.

Returning to the squad for the first time in many years is the 19-times Open World Champion, David Small, from Birmingham.

Small dominated the sport worldwide for two decades, winning his first world title in 2002 and his last in 2018. He holds the current world records in barefoot jumping (set in 2010) and tricks (set in 2018).

Small was introduced to barefoot water skiing at the age of 13 at Chasewater in the West Midlands and started to specialise in the discipline when he was 17.

Although it may have been a while since Small – now aged 42 – competed, he has continued to be immersed in the sport, coaching at the World Barefoot Center in Florida, where he has lived since 2007. At the World Championships, he will compete in all three events of jumping, tricks and slalom in the Open Men category.

Small is by far the only medal prospect for GB at the World Championships. The squad includes European Champions and World Championships medallists.

The full squad is:

OPEN MEN

David Small (see above).

Tom Heaps, 27, from Warrington in Cheshire. He has 13 European titles and is a silver and bronze medallist at World Championships. He is a former World Junior Champion in barefoot jumping. Heaps, an electrician and property developer, trains at Weaver Sailing and Ski Club at Frodsham in Cheshire. He will compete in jumping, tricks and slalom.

Rick Moyes, 36, from Stockport, Greater Manchester. Moyes is an eight-times European medallist. He is the owner of a construction company, M Build BC Ltd, and trains at Weaver Sailing and Ski Club at Frodsham in Cheshire. He will compete in jumping, tricks and slalom.

Adam Chalk, 33, from Dartford, Kent. Chalk was the 2024 European Champion in slalom and is a two-time European silver medallist. He works as a GP and trains at Lydd Water Ski Club in Kent. He will compete in tricks and slalom.

Robbie Crewe, 36, from Wakefield, West Yorkshire. Crewe won two bronze medals in the Senior Men (Over 35s) category at this year’s European Championships. At the Worlds he competes in Open Men in jumping, tricks and slalom. Crewe is the owner of RVC Electrical Ltd and trains at White Cross Ski Club in Cawood, North Yorkshire.

JUNIOR BOYS

Olly Moore, 17, from Howden, East Riding of Yorkshire. Moore, a student at Goole Academy, is the reigning European Junior Boys Champion in tricks and the silver medallist in slalom. He’s been in the GB Team since 2023 and his home training site is White Cross Ski Club in Cawood, North Yorkshire. He will compete in tricks and slalom.

JUNIOR GIRLS

Matilda Mulcahy, 17, from Ashford, Kent. Mulcahy is a student at Highworth Grammar School in Ashford. She won three silver medals – in tricks, slalom and overall - in the Junior Girls category at the 2026 European Championships. Mulcahy has been in the GB team since 2023 and trains at Lydd Water Ski Club in Kent.

The 2026 IWWF Open, Under-23 & Junior World Barefoot Water Ski Championships take place at Lake Myrtle, Auburndale, Florida, USA, from 17-24 October.

NOTES FOR EDITORS

For more information, please contact Jane Peel, British Water Ski & Wakeboard Head of Communications on 07802 496927 or jane@bwsf.co.uk

Photos can be found in the dropbox link below. Please credit the photographers where shown.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/s6l378msc90vc3s9br5ae/AH9WaEgMltPfYtOuSPHOjWs?rlkey=qdiluowr5y2c455fajz11jf29&dl=0

Barefoot Waterskiing

As the name suggests, barefooters do not use skis but only their bare feet on the water. They are towed by a boat which generally travels faster than for other waterski disciplines, reaching speeds of up to 45mph (72kph).

Like regular – or classic - waterskiing, barefooters compete in the three events of slalom (crossing the boat’s wakes from one side to the other repeatedly), tricks and jump. In jump, all that matters is the distance achieved off the ramp and a successful landing. Medals are awarded in each individual event. There are also overall medals - which combine the competitor’s scores in the three events – and Team medals.

British Water Ski & Wakeboard (BWSW) is the sport’s national governing body and a non-profit making membership organisation. All its income is invested in developing and protecting water skiing and wakeboarding across the UK from the grassroots to our top athletes. 2026 is our 75th anniversary.

The International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation (IWWF) is the sport’s world governing body to which national organisations such as BWSW are affiliated.

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