KUCHING: World champion Harley Clifford added another title to his collection when he won the Pro-Men final at the IWWF World Wakeboard Cup at the Kuching Waterfront yesterday.
The 18-year-old Australian wakeboarder who is seeded number one in this competition, put on a near perfect display to score the highest points of 92.67 to collect a trophy and a US$15,000 cheque.
“Being able to compete in Sarawak, Malaysia for the first time is a great experience for me. My next stop is the World Wakeboard championship in China and I hope to do even better there,” he told reporters.
Clifford felt that he should be taking a rest after competing in so many championships.
He said the good achievements and success were the result of the hard work and sacrifices he had put into his training which was three times daily.
Coming in second place was fourth seed American Andrew Adkinson with a score of 87.90 points to collect US$10,000 while his compatriot Steel Lafferty, number three seed was third with 79.78 points to receive US$7,000.
The fourth to sixth placings were occupied by Daniel Power also from the US with 77.12 points, Same Carne of Great Britain (64.57 points) and another British competitor Dan Nott (45.57 points).
They collected US$4,000, US$2,600 and US$2,600 respectively.
In the Pro-Women final, American top seed Raimi Merrit continued her impressive form to finish top with 68.79 points.
She received the champion’s trophy and US$8,000 for her effort in the three-day championship held together for the first time with the Sarawak Regatta.
The American’s closest rival Amber Wing, seeded second and from Australia, was also outstanding, scoring 67.23 points to pick up a cheque of US$5,000.
Japanese contestant Miku Asai salvaged some pride for Asia by finishing third with a score of 65.22 points and received US$3,700.
Fourth to sixth were Caroline Djupsjo of Sweden (59.78 points), Sasha Christian of Singapore (48.90 points) and Elke Venken of Belgium (46.99 points).
They received US$2,500, US$2,000 and US$1,800 respectively.