Water-skiers excel at KwaZulu-Natal Open

A GROUP of fi ve Namibian waterskiers made the long trip to Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, to compete in the KwaZulu-Natal Open water-ski championships. The competition was held over three days and counts towards the EAME and world rankings. Some of South Africa’s best skiers took part in the event.

Conditions at Satellite Dam were perfect, with silky smooth water for the duration of the tournament, good enough for Natascha Rött cher to improve the Namibian record in her age category from 6 buoys on a 16 meter line to 2 buoys on a 14 meter line @ 55 km/h.

Namibians placed well and achieved the following results:

Dolphin Girls:

Silja Waldschmidt, 1st place with 2.5 buoys on a 18 m rope @ 55 km/h.

Junior Girls:

Natascha Röttcher, 1st place with 2 buoys on a 14 m rope @ 55 km/h. Jana Kiesewetter, 3rd place with 2 buoys on a 16 m rope @ 55 km/h. Ronja Waldschmidt, 4th place with 5.5 buoys on a 18 m rope @ 52 km/h.

Senior Men 1:

Gerald Röttcher, 1st place with 5 buoys on a 18m rope @ 55 km/h This tournament was a good preparation for the Namibian and All- African championships to be held at the Von Bach Dam from 1 to 5 April 2010. A total of 55 skiers from across Africa will compete in the categories slalom, jump, trick and wakeboarding. Thirty-fi ve offi cials will ensure a smooth running event.