“The U.S. Elite Water Ski Team bringing home its fourth consecutive world team title at the 2007 Water Ski World Championships is a tremendous feat for the United States,” said Jim Grew, president of USA Water Ski. “Year after year, results prove that the United States is home to many of the top water ski athletes in the world.”

The U.S. Elite Water Ski Team finished with 8,087.30 points in winning the world team gold medal at the biennial event. France earned the silver medal with 8,066.95 points and Belarus earned the bronze medal with 7,792.31 points. The United States has now won 25 of the 30 world team championships since the first Water Ski World Championships was held in 1949.

Members of the U.S. Elite Water Ski Team were: Rhoni Barton-Bischoff (Orlando, Fla.), April Coble-Eller (Lillington, N.C.), Regina Jaquess (Suwanee, Ga.), Mandy Nightingale (Sapulpa, Okla.), Cory Pickos (Orlando, Fla.) and Jimmy Siemers (Round Rock, Texas). Mike Meek (Albany, Ohio) was the coach of the U.S. Team and Frank Harrison (Rancho Mirage, Calif.) was the team leader.

Nightingale was the lone U.S. team member to win an individual medal. She won the bronze medal in women’s tricks, tallying 8,150 points. U.S. independent athletes Freddy Krueger (Winter Garden, Fla.), Jeff Rodgers (Ninety Six, S.C.), Chris Rossi (Orlando, Fla.) and Karen Truelove (Winter Garden, Fla.) also won medals.

Krueger won the gold medal in men's jumping, leaping 238 feet. Canada's Jaret Llewellyn earned the silver medal with a jump of 232 feet and Great Britain's Jason Seels earned the bronze medal with a jump of 224 feet.

Great Britain's Nicole Arthur won the gold medal in women’s slalom, scoring 2 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off. Truelove earned the silver medal with 1-1/2 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off and Australia's Karina Nowlan earned the bronze, scoring 1-1/2 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off. Because Truelove had a higher score than Nowlan in the preliminary round, Truelove was credited with the silver medal.

In men's slalom, Italy's Thomas Degasperi won the gold medal, scoring 3 buoys at 41 feet off. Rodgers and Rossi earned the silver and bronze medals, respectively, each scoring 2 buoys at 41 feet off. Rodgers clinched the silver medal in the subsequent runoff when he scored 5-1/2 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off to Rossi's 5 buoys at 39-1/2 feet off.

In women's tricks, France's Clementine Lucine won the gold medal, scoring 8,430 points and Belarus' Natalia Berdnikova earned the silver medal with 8,160 points. In men's tricks, France's Nicolas Le Forestier won the gold medal with 11,860 points, Belarus' Aliaksei Zharnasek earned the silver medal with 11,470 points and Belarus' Oleg Deviatovski earned the bronze medal with 11,140 points.

Greece's Angeliki Andriopoulou won the gold medal in women’s jumping with a leap of 180 feet. Switzerland's Elena Thomsen earned the silver medal with a 174-foot leap and Berdnikova earned the bronze medal with a 169-foot jump.

Llewellyn, Deviatovski and Italy's Marco Riva earned the gold, silver and bronze medals, respectively, in men's overall. Lucine, Andriopoulou and Thomsen earned the gold, silver and bronze medals, respectively, in women's overall.

For complete results, visit www.USAWATERSKI.org.

USA Water Ski was formed in 1939 as a non-profit organization promoting water skiing in the United States. USA Water Ski is affiliated with the International Water Ski Federation (world governing body) and is recognized by the United States Olympic Committee and Pan-American Sports Organization as the national governing body of organized water skiing in the United States. With more than 30,000 members, USA Water Ski is the largest water ski federation in the world.