CLOSE
Sign up to get news on contests, pro events, new products and special offers.
WATERSKI MagazineWINTER HAVEN, Fla. — U.S. water ski athlete Chris Parrish (Orlando, Fla.) won Men's slalom at the Moomba Masters World Cup event in Melbourne, Australia, for his first career World Cup victory. With the win, Parrish moved into a first-place tie with fellow U.S. athlete Wade Cox (Chuluota, Fla.) on the 2000 Cafi de Colombia World Cup points standings.
Parrish, who set the Moomba Masters slalom record in the semifinals with a score of 1-1/4 buoys at 41 feet off, posted a final-round score of 3-1/4 at 39-1/2 off to top Great Britain's Andy Mapple (3 at 39-1/2 off) and Cox (2 at 39-1/2 off). Parrish's winning performance came one week after he placed third at the season-opening Oz Ski World Cup event in Newcastle, Australia.
“Chris has long been seen as an up-and-coming skier with a bright future,” said Bob Schouten, USA Water Ski's director of competition and athlete programs. “Chris' recent performances show that the future is here.”
In addition to Parrish and Cox, six other U.S. water ski athletes recorded top-five finishes in the Moomba Masters.
Kristi Overton-Johnson (Keystone Heights, Fla.), the 1999 Women's slalom World Cup Champion, finished second to France's Geraldine Jamin in a runoff after both ran 2 at 38 off in the Women's slalom final. U.S. Elite Water Ski Team member Karen Truelove (Winter Garden, Fla.) finished fourth with a score of 3-1/2 at 35 off. Overton-Johnson remains in first place on the Cafi de Colombia World Cup points standings, while Truelove is currently sixth.
Men's jumping featured a three-way tie for second place among U.S. athletes Ryan Fitts (Shreveport, La.), Freddy Krueger (Winter Garden, Fla.) and Scot Ellis (Lakeland, Fla.), who all posted jumps of 208 feet in the final round. After the tie was broken with scores from previous rounds, Fitts finished second, Krueger, the World Cup points co-leader with Canada's Jaret Llewellyn, was third, and Ellis finished fourth. April Coble (Lillington, N.C.) finished fourth in Women's jumping with a leap of 150 feet.
The Water Ski World Cup continues May 26-28 with the U.S. Masters in Pine Mountain, Ga. It will be the third of eight stops on the 2000 Cafi de Colombia Water Ski World Cup.
Visit USA Water Ski on the Web at:
http://www.USAWATERSKI.org
