Joel Poland, Great Britain’s waterskiing superstar, has demonstrated once again that he is the greatest talent of his generation. The 27-year-old from Clapham in London has set a new overall world waterski record.

It came at one of the first major competitions of the year, the Ski Fluid Classic, held near Orlando in Florida, USA, on Sunday.

No other waterskier has proved capable of coming close to Poland, placing him firmly among the legends of the sport.

Breaking the overall world record requires the skier to compete in the three separate and very different waterski events of tricks, slalom and jump. The combined scores from all three – in a single round of competition - make up the overall score.

“I’ve been chasing a record like this for years!” Poland said. “Three huge scores in the same round. Feels absolutely insane.”

The record has to be officially ratified by the International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation – a process that follows every record to ensure that all the rules were followed. Assuming it is, this will be Poland’s ninth overall world record and breaks his own record, set in October 2025.

The new record came after Poland scored 12,160 points in tricks, jumped 71.4 metres and rounded 3 buoys on a 10.25 metre-long rope in the slalom event. These are phenomenal scores, which would be capable of winning each individual event against skiers who specialise only in tricks, in slalom or in jump. It’s prompting many in the sport to call him the GOAT – the Greatest of All Time.

“Right now, his level is untouchable,” says Kyle Eade, a respected international coach and former professional skier who runs Ski Fluid where Poland set the record.

“If he remains focused, motivated, uninjured, and continues to win at his current rate, he is on a clear path to becoming the sport’s new GOAT - at least for this era.”

Eade says there is something special about the young Brit.

“He is arguably the only skier in the last 40 years who realistically has a chance to win all three events at a major tournament. That is what makes him different.”

Poland is already a two-time World Champion. He was the Men’s Overall World Champion in 2021 and is the reigning World Champion in Men’s Jump, winning the title in Italy in August 2025 with a European record of 72.1 metres.

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 as shown.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/vkcsk5tgvyubisyuzr3uy/ADiREdLRsSGdQikeJnWz714?rlkey=bz8jbomn2jp8fi2ohv069ovk4&dl=0

WATER SKIING EXPLAINED

Slalom

The boat travels at a constant speed in a straight line down the middle of the slalom course. At elite level the speed is 58kph (36mph) for men and 55kph (34mph) for women. The skier, on a single ski, has to go through the entrance gates - a pair of buoys in the middle of the course - then virage from side to side across the boat wakes, successfully rounding six turn buoys before going through the exit gates.

Each successful pass results in the rope being shortened, making it increasingly difficult to reach the turn buoys. Eventually, the rope length becomes less than the distance from the boat to the turn buoys so the skier has to use body length and reach to round the buoys. The winner is the skier who completes the most turn buoys at the shortest rope length.

Jump

Water ski jumping is a spectacular high-adrenaline event which involves skiing on two skis over a ramp at speeds of up to 70mph, taking off and landing on the water to ski away. There are no style points. All the matters is the distance travelled and a successful landing.

Tricks

The skier is given two 20-second passes to complete as many different tricks as possible. These can vary from a simple 180 degree turn to complex somersaults with a twist. There are also ‘toehold’ tricks where the skier holds the rope with one foot. Each trick is worth a given number of points according to difficulty. Points are awarded only if the tricks are deemed to have been successfully performed.

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.

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