Five British waterskiers will compete at one of the biggest international competitions of the year - The Masters in Georgia, USA - next weekend. They include World Champions and a world record holder.

Spots at the exclusive professional competition are highly sought after and a place on the podium is a high point of any waterskier’s career.

Among the GB competitors are two defending Masters’ Champions:

• Joel Poland (27) from Clapham in London is a three-time Masters winner in Men’s Jump and is the reigning World Champion in the event. Last month he broke the overall waterski world record - which involves skiing in the three events of slalom, tricks and jump - for the ninth time (still awaiting official ratification by the world governing body). He is widely considered to be the world’s best three-event waterskier. Poland has also qualified for a spot in Men’s Tricks at the Masters. He won bronze in that event in 2025.

• Slalom specialist Freddie Winter (36) from Wandsworth in London has won the Men’s Slalom competition at the Masters three times. Last year, he triumphed against the odds just a few months after returning from a career-threatening leg injury. He is also a two-time World Champion, having won in 2017 and 2023.

Freddie Winter will be joined in Men’s Slalom by slalom specialist Will Asher, (43) from Lincoln. Asher has won at the Masters five times and this will be his 22nd appearance at the event. Like Winter, he is a two-time World Champion (2005, 2009).

Joel Poland will be joined in Men’s Jump by jump specialist Jack Critchley (29) from Scunthorpe in Lincolnshire, a previous Masters’ medallist. Both he and Poland are members of a small elite in the sport who have jumped more than 70 metres.

The fifth British waterskier is Seb Turp (17) from Gosfield in Essex. He has qualified to compete in Junior Men’s Tricks. It will be his first appearance at the Masters and he earned his place by winning a qualifying competition in Spain last summer.

The Masters Waterski & Wakeboard Tournament will take place at Robin Lake, Callaway Gardens, Pine Mountain, Georgia, USA. The competition begins with the Junior Masters on Friday 22nd May. The preliminary rounds of the main event take place on Saturday 23rd with the finals on Sunday 24th.

NOTES FOR EDITORS

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

Photos can be found in the dropbox link. Please credit the photographers, as shown.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/fiuospljrcoaztvn9dmvv/AAxLs4UmPZF2CSM6IgaWUnM?rlkey=rildgi6ysisyf9441vmn3n2nm&dl=0

The competition will be livestreamed on the Masters Website at https://masterswaterski.com where you can also find the full schedule and follow the results.

WATERSKIING 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 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 them. The winner is the skier who completes the most turn buoys at the shortest rope length.

Jumping - This dramatic spectator event involves skiing over a ramp at speeds of up to 70mph, taking off and landing on the water to ski away. Each skier has three attempts at the ramp. There are no style points. All that matters is the distance achieved.

Tricks - The skier is given two 20-second runs to complete as many different tricks as possible. These can vary from a simple 180 turn to complex somersaults with twists. 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 waterskiing and wakeboarding across the UK from the grassroots to our top athletes. 2026 is BWSW’s 75th anniversary.

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