British Jet Skier earns his fifth World title

by Emma Slater / RYA on 19 Oct 2010 Lee Stone a British Jet Skier from Chesterfield, England has clinched his fifth World title having been crowned IJSBA Pro Freestyle World Champion for 2010 after competing at the International Jet Sport Boating Association World Finals in Lake Havasu City, Arizona.

The 19 year-old was one of 15 RYA National Jet Skiers to represent the UK at the 29th Annual World Finals. 667 entries from 36 states of the USA and a total of 37 Nations attend the games in a bid for 48 World Titles, including 43 closed-course racing classes, three slalom classes as well as Pro Freestyle and Amateur Freestyle provided World Champions at the eight day competition.

Lee secured the IJSBA World Pro Freestyle Championship by out manoeuvring his opponents a veteran field of nine of the World’s top freestylists during the competition.

Wowing the crowds and judges, Lee manoeuvred his EME custom personal watercraft through a creative two-minute acrobatic routine which included a 'Superman back flip', a trick which up until now had never been done before on flat water in the history of the sport. Lee executed it perfectly and somersaulted home with an awesome score of 58.6 points from the judges with a maximum of 60 available.

'I knew I needed to bring something new to the competition to give me a shot at the World title, so I spent the majority of my focus on that trick alone and to pull off the trick in competition was just truly amazing. It’s such a risky trick, it’s a case of you have to give it 100% focus when attempting this trick otherwise you’re in serious trouble which keeps your heart racing and each time you land is like sigh of relief', commented Lee on pulling off his World Championship winning routine.

He continued: 'After seeing the reaction of the crowd after I landed the Superman back flip I knew I was in a good position for a good result. But with a few riders still to compete after me, i had no idea what the other riders would produce. Even after everyone had finished their routine I still had no idea where stood overall, my nerves were definitely racing.

'Hearing the countdown of results was like being a small child counting down the hours till Christmas day- it felt like days! Third place was announced and still not having heard my name I knew I was set for first or second after what seemed a lifetime they announced second place, Japan’s Fumikazu Watanabe my knees just buckled and I hit the floor it was a very emotional day, one that i will never forget!

'This title had been a dream for me ever since day one being introduced to the sport and then holding that trophy; it was a dream come true. It’s been a long journey of hard work, training and dedication but it has finally paid off and is the greatest feeling in the World!'

Lee extends a huge thank you to all his sponsors who have made this dream a reality, without who none of this would have been possible, and a special thanks to Eric Malone and all at EME for supplying him with such a fantastic ski.

For more information, please go to: wwwrya.org.uk