Brisbane, Australia - The world of cable wakeboarding continued its expansion across the globe as the world’s best riders showcased their talents at the second Cable Wakeboard World Championships October 3-5 at the Grand Opening of the new Logan Park Cableway in Brisbane, Australia.
First held 2001 in Duisburg, Germany, the biannual Cable Worlds hosted over 95 riders from 15 countries across five continents. Built especially for wakeboarding, the new Logan Park Cableway features higher towers and shorter distances from tower to tower, and was well-received by the riders.
Defending Open Men Champion Bernhard Hinterberger of Germany captured his second world champion title and a gold medal with sick runs that included a surface 720, whirlybird, and double s-bend to blind. Silver medallist Chad Forrest of the USA dazzled the crowd with an insane run, including his signature “Suicide Slide” raley to boardslide onto the rainbow slider, while Benni Suess of Germany answered with a flawless technical run to capture the bronze.
The Open Ladies division continues to raise eyebrows with their increasingly broad cache of tricks both in the air and on the sliders. Kirsten Fromeyer of Germany captured the gold medal, edging out Denise DeHaan of The Netherlands (2nd) and Sally Grice of Australia (3rd).
Other gold medallists were Peter-Pascal Schmit of Germany (Boys), Pauline Dyrschka of Germany (Junior Ladies), Bjorn Seidler of Germany (Junior Men), and Zak Strickland of Great Britain (Masters Men).
Germany, with its powerhouse of riders and more cableways than any country in the world captured the team gold medal, while Great Britain finished second, and Australia landed third.
The next Cable Wakeboard Worlds will be held in 2005, where wakeskating will also be included as a new division.
Wakeboarding on the cable is a growing extreme sport worldwide. Each year, tens of thousands of riders of all ages ride the over 110 cableways located in more than 30 countries around the world.
