13/08/2006
For the 2nd year running the IWSF World Cup came to Enniskillen. Based at the Broadmeadow beside the Fermanagh Lakeland Forum, competitors battled it out in the final round of the World Cup.
More than 50 of the world's top water-skiers from 16 different countries took part in a variety of events over the weekend.
Des Burke-Kennedy of the Irish Water-ski Federation had promised an exciting day out for spectators.
"This will be spectacular. It's the last stop of our tour of our water-ski World Cup at Enniskillen," he said.
He said that in addition to valuable world cup points for competitors, there was $750,000 in prize money up for grabs.
"They'll be hitting base at around 65 mph, flying 70 metres: the world record is 72 metres, which is further than even Evil Knievel went," he added.
One of those taking part is the current world cup wate-skiing leader June Fladborg, who says she "can't wait" for the competition to begin.
June Fladborg was impressed with the scenic location |
"It looks beautiful and the set-up is amazing," she said.
"They've been working on this for a long time, it's remarkable and I'm really excited to be here."
Former European champion Rodney Watson from Killyleagh said the fact that Enniskillen was hosting this event for the first time was a big deal for Irish water-skiers.
"It's well worth watching - there's a lot of speed involved, especially with some of the really top guys," he said.
He said he felt privileged to get a chance to compete with such a high standard, especially on home waters.
"Possibly the cold will give us a bit of an advantage but they're all professionals and it's hard to compete. We can just try our best," he said.
