The U.S. U17 Water Ski Team won the overall team gold medal and six U.S. water ski athletes earned individual medals in respective events at the 2024 IWWF World Under 17 Waterski Championships, Aug. 1-4, at the Lakes of KastynStone in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
The United States tallied 8,075.58 points in winning the gold medal for the 14th time in the history of the biennial event. Australia earned the silver medal (6,766.47 points) and France claimed the bronze medal (6,665.39 points). Athletes and teams from 21 countries competed in the four-day tournament as the world team title and world individual titles in slalom, tricks, jumping and overall were at stake.
Members of the U.S. U17 Water Ski Team were: Alexia Abelson (Holderness, N.H.), Jake Abelson (Holderness, N.H.), Cameron Davis (Milford, Va.), Damien Eade (Clermont, Fla.), Jaeden Eade (Clermont, Fla.) and Camryn Waters (Groveland, Fla.). Sam Greenwood (Little Rock, Ark.) was the coach and Brittany Wharton (Little Rock, Ark.) served as the manager of the U.S. U17 Water Ski Team.
Alexia Abelson won the gold medal in girls’ tricks and earned the silver in overall; Jake Abelson won gold in boys’ jump and overall, and earned the silver in tricks; Damien Eade earned the silver in boys’ slalom; and Jaeden Eade won the gold in boys’ slalom. In addition, U.S. independent athletes BG Bickley (Macon, Ga.) and Ella Gay (Winter Garden, Fla.) earned bronze medals in boys’ jump and girls’ tricks, respectively.
Jake Abelson won boys’ jump with a distance of 175 feet in the finals. Germany’s Tim Wild earned the silver (173 feet) and Bickley earned the bronze (167 feet). Abelson won the gold medal in boys’ overall with 2,855.77 points after recording top scores of 2-1/2 buoys at 38 feet off in slalom (finals), 12,160 points in tricks (finals) and 175 feet in jump (finals). He earned the silver in tricks with a score of 12,170 points in the finals.
Alexia Abelson, who earned the top seed for the finals with a score of 8,200 points in the preliminary round, won the gold medal in girls’ tricks, scoring 7,680 points in the finals. Australia’s Kristy Appleton earned the silver (5,500 points) and Gay earned the bronze (5,030 points). Abelson earned the silver in overall (2,276.92 points) after recording high scores of 5 buoys at 35 feet off in slalom (preliminary round), 8,200 points in tricks (preliminary round) and 72 feet in jump (preliminary round).
Siblings Damien and Jaeden Eade had a thrilling runoff for the boys’ slalom gold. After both athletes scored 2 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off in the finals, Jaeden won the runoff and gold medal with a score of 4 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off to Damien’s 3 buoys at 38 feet off. Wild earned the bronze (3 buoys at 38 feet off). Jaeden Eade’s preliminary round score of 4 buoys at 39-1/ 2 feet off was a new U17 World Championships’ record, breaking the mark of 3-1/2 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off set by Robert Pigozzi (Dominican Republic) at the 2014 U17 Worlds.
Other world champions were Chile’s Matias Gonzalez, boys’ tricks (12,410 points); Peru’s Cristhiana De Osma, girls’ slalom (4-1/2 buoys at 38 feet off); Denmark’s Maise Jacobsen, girls’ jump (149 feet); and Australia’s Kristy Appleton, girls’ overall (2,578.87 points). Gonzalez’s score of 12,410 points was a new U17 World Championships’ record, breaking the mark of 11,670 points set by Abelson in the preliminary round.
Among other highlights from U.S. team members, Alexia Abelson placed fourth in girls’ slalom (2 buoys at 35 feet off); Waters finished fifth in girls’ jump (129 feet); Jake Abelson placed sixth in boys’ slalom (2-1/2 buoys at 38 feet off); Damien Eade tied for ninth in boys’ jump (157 feet) and placed ninth overall (1,965.64points); Jaeden Eade finished 11th in boys’ jump (153 feet) and seventh overall (2,101.95 points); Davis placed 12th in girls’ slalom (4 buoys at 28 feet off) and fifth overall (2,029.81 points); and Waters finished fifth in girls’ jump (129 feet) and 10th overall (1,915.61 points).
Among other highlights from U.S. independents, Bickley, in addition to his bronze in jump, placed fifth overall (2,205.41 points) and sixth in tricks (6,500 points); Zoe Carpenter (Bloomingdale, N.Y.) placed fifth in girls’ slalom (1-1/2 buoys at 35 feet off); Luka Zazadze (Miami Shores, Fla.) finished fourth in boys’ slalom (3 buoys at 38 feet off); Corbin Pierce (McDonald, Tenn.) placed fifth in boys' jump (163 feet); Landon Stisher (Johns Island, S.C.) finished 10th in boys' slalom (1/2 buoy at 38 feet off); and Jayden Stabel (Chico, Calif.) placed 11th in boys' slalom (5 buoys at 35 feet off).
The United States has won the world team title in 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 2000, 2002, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2024. France won in 1998 and 2006. Canada won in 2004 and 2016.
The Ski Nautique was the official towboat of IWWF World Under 17 Waterski Championships. Nautique is a National Sponsor of USA Water Ski & Wake Sports.