Team Canada have set their sights on a gold haul when the Waterski World Championships gets underway at the Water Sport Complex, Putrajaya tomorrow and ends on Sunday.
(Aug 13-18) The Canadians, spearheaded by four-time world champion Whitney McClintock-Rini and reigning womenâs tricks champion Neilly Ross, have been in Malaysia for the past week preparing for the world meet.
And they are optimistic that they are well ahead of the game as they seek another strong finish, with their main target to recapture the team title they last won in 2015.
âI actually came in March to look at the site here and to straighten everything out. So there was no hassle for us as weâre already ahead of the game,â said Canadian head coach Steve Bush.
âFrom March to now, the organisers have a done a lot of work to the site by preventing the backwash and putting the bricks down. The only issue here is mother nature, particularly the wind.
âBut I believe weâre in good shape to win the team title. That is our goal since we missed it in 2017 and weâve made some adjustments to the team.
âWe certainly have a good chance but itâs going to be a roller-coaster ride. The US are always the top team that weâre after but thereâs also strong teams like Belarus, France and possibly England as well.â
The Americans, featuring a squad of reigning and past world champions, are the defending champions and are definitely the team to beat. The 29-year-old McClintock, world champion in 2009 and 2011, however believes the Canadians are young but very dangerous.
âWeâve worked really hard to come out on top this time. This team is young but it is a strong team,â said McClintock.
âI think the difference from 2017 is that we added a few more backup tricking scorers to the team.
âThe newest member to the team – Paige (Rini) – who is also my step-daughter, is good in tricks and is an overall athlete who will be a valuable member for the team race.
âTwo years ago I let the team down unfortunately, in tricking. So hopefully weâll get it back this time.â
Besides McClintock, Ross and Paige, the other members of the Canadian team include two-time menâs jump world champion Ryan Dodd, menâs overall world No. 3 Dorien Llewellyn and Stephen Neveu.
Meanwhile the Malaysian team are also ready for the challenge in their own backyard despite a mini crisis suffered by Aaliyah Yoong Hanifah two weeks ago.
The 16-year-old injured her left ear during a flip in training and was advised by doctors to rest for two weeks. Aaliyah, the reigning Asian champion in tricks, has however made a speedy recovery and is eager to jump back into action.
âI wasnât going to rest with the worlds so close. Fortunately, Iâm all healed up now and Iâve been preparing well, first under Larry Gisler and now Marian Malaquin,â said Aaliyah.
âIâm really excited for the world meet because this is the waters that Iâve been skiing in since I was young.â
The other members of the Malaysian team are Aiden Yoong Hanifah, Adam Yoong Hanifah and Nadiah Nasir. The opening ceremony for the world meet will be held at the grandstand of the Water Sport Complex from 6pm on Monday.
Federal Territories minister Khalid Abdul Samad is scheduled to flag off the event. Competition will start tomorrow (Monday) morning with the womenâs slalom series 5 and 4, womenâs jump series 3 and the menâs tricks series 5, 4 and 3.
The world meet is hosted and supported by the Putrajaya Corporation, the Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau, an agency under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, the Ministry of Youth and Sports and Nautique Boats USA.
Admission is free for all spectators with the preliminary rounds to start from Aug 13-16. The finals will be held on the Aug 17-18 weekend.
