UAE Jet Ski Championship Round 4 overall

by Alice Ekonomou on 25 Mar 2012 UAE Jet Ski championship, organised by Dubai International Marine Club, fourth round was held off the Umm Suqeim Beach on Saturday. Chris Wilkinson, Jun Ikoma and Steven Duliach all scored wins in their respective classes.

Wilkinson finished with a third and second in the two motos held to top the day in the Pro Runabout GP class ahead of fellow Englishman James Bouchel and Japanese rider Toshi Ohara. The UAE’s Nader Bin Hindi, who had the misfortune of finishing the first moto in distant 12th did well to recover and finish ahead of Wilkinson in an exciting second moto, to stay fourth overall at the end of the day.

The popular Ikoma was easily the best showman in the Freestyle class to end at the top of the standings. The Japanese was followed by the UAE duo of Khalid Al Qubaisi and Ahmad Saeed Hatim.

In a stiff competition for honours in the Pro Ski GP class, it was the French duo of Duliach and Nacho Armillas battling all the way with the UK’s Wilkinson following in third place. Ultimately, it was Duliach’s experience that came through as he capped a first place in the opening moto with a second in the other to finish with a maximum 60 points.

In the Expert Runabout Stock class, it was Omani rider Khamis Subait Al Hosni pushing the Qatari trio of Tamer Abu Faisal, Walid Mahmoud Al Sharshini and Abdullah Ghulam Ali into second, third and fourth places respectively.

After missing out in the Pro Ski GP class, Armillas dominated the Expert Ski Limited class with a second and first to end at the top of the standings leaving hot favourite Al Mur Mohammad Bin Huraiz in second and Toshi Ohara in third.

The glory in the Novice Runabout class was reserved for Abdullah Ghulam Ali of Qatar as he finished clear of countrymen Rashid Al Mana’ie and Mohammad Abdullah Al Haidous.

In the Ski Junior Stock class, the top spot was won by Frenchman Burger Ryan while Mansoor Rashid Al Qubaisi and Lahij Khalid Saif Al Ma’asam of the UAE had to stay content with second and third respectively.

Ahmed Bin Thani, Chairman, Board of Directors, Dubai International Marine Club was joined by board members Ali Bin Ghulaitha and Mohammad Suhail Al Ayali during the presentation of trophies to the various winners.

'One year back we took the decision to shift jet ski racing to the open beach so that we could have a fine spectacle for the general public. This is our way of displaying jet ski racing as a safe sport provided the riders respect and adhere to basic safety regulations,' noted Championship Manager Sid Bensalah.

The next heat of the UAE Jet Ski Championship will be held in Abu Dhabi on March 30th.

Results of Heat 4:
Ski Junior Stock: 1. Burger Ryan, 2. Mansoor Rashid Al Qubaisi, 3. Lahij Khalid Saif Al Ma’asam.
Expert Runabout Stock: 1. Khamis Subait Al Hosni, 2. Tamer Abu Faisal, 3. Walid Mahmoud Al Sharshini.
Pro Ski GP: 1. Steven Duliach, 2. Nacho Armillas, 3. Chris Wilkinson.
Expert Ski Limited: 1. Nacho Armillas, 2. Al Mur Mohammad Bin Huraiz, 3. Toshi Ohara.
Novice Runabout Stock: 1. Abdullah Ghulam Ali, 2. Rashid Al Mana’ie, 3. Mohammad Abdullah Al Haidous.
Free Style: 1. Jun Ikoma, 2. Khalid Al Qubaisi, 3. Ahmad Saeed Hatim.
Pro Runabout Stock: 1. Chris Wilkinson, 2. James Bouchel, 3. Toshi Ohara.

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