<span class="mw-page-title-main">Water skiing</span>

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Water skiing

<p><b>Water <a href="/en/Skiing" title="Skiing" class="wl">skiing</a></b> (also <b>waterskiing</b> or <b>water-skiing</b>) is a <a href="/en/Surface_water_sports" title="Surface water sports" class="mw-redirect wl">surface water sport</a> in which an individual is pulled behind a <a href="/en/Boat" title="Boat" class="wl">boat</a> or a <a href="/en/Cable_skiing" title="Cable skiing" class="wl">cable ski installation</a> over a <a href="/en/Body_of_water" title="Body of water" class="wl">body of water</a>, skimming the surface on two skis or one ski. The sport requires sufficient area on a stretch of water, one or two skis, a tow boat with tow rope, two or three people (depending on local boating laws),<span class="mw-ref reference" id="cite_ref-1"><a href="#cite_note-1" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 1;"><span class="mw-reflink-text">[1]</span></a></span> and a <a href="/en/Personal_flotation_device" title="Personal flotation device" class="wl">personal flotation device</a>. In addition, the skier must have adequate upper and lower body strength, muscular endurance, and good balance.</p>

<div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none" about="#mwt1">Surface water sport</div>
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<style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1066479718" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles mw:Transclusion">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-header,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-subheader,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-above,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-title,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-image,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-below{text-align:center}</style><div class='mobile-collapse'><header class="mobile-collapse-header mobile-collapse-btn"><b>Quick facts: Highest governing&nbsp;body, First performed,...</b> <span class='arrow'>▼</span></header> <table class="infobox vcard mobile-collapse-element"><caption class="infobox-title fn" style="padding-bottom:0.2em;">Water skiing</caption><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-image"><span><a href="/en/File:Water_skiing_on_the_yarra02.jpg" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:Water_skiing_on_the_yarra02.jpg"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Water_skiing_on_the_yarra02.jpg/250px-Water_skiing_on_the_yarra02.jpg" decoding="async" data-file-width="1600" data-file-height="1067" data-file-type="bitmap" height="167" width="250" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Water_skiing_on_the_yarra02.jpg/375px-Water_skiing_on_the_yarra02.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Water_skiing_on_the_yarra02.jpg/500px-Water_skiing_on_the_yarra02.jpg 2x" alt="Water_skiing_on_the_yarra02.jpg"></a></span><div class="infobox-caption">Water skiing on the <a href="/en/Yarra_River" title="Yarra River" class="wl">Yarra River</a> in <a href="/en/Melbourne" title="Melbourne" class="wl">Melbourne</a></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="line-height:1.3em; padding-right:1.0em;">Highest <a href="/en/Sports_governing_body" title="Sports governing body" class="wl">governing<span>&nbsp;</span>body</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="line-height:1.3em;"><a href="/en/International_Waterski_&_Wakeboard_Federation" title="International Waterski &amp; Wakeboard Federation" class="wl">International Waterski &amp; Wakeboard Federation</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="line-height:1.3em; padding-right:1.0em;">First performed</th><td class="infobox-data" style="line-height:1.3em;">1922, United States</td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background:#eee;">Characteristics</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="line-height:1.3em; padding-right:1.0em;">Contact</th><td class="infobox-data" style="line-height:1.3em;">No</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="line-height:1.3em; padding-right:1.0em;"><a href="/en/Mixed-sex_sports" title="Mixed-sex sports" class="wl">Mixed-sex</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="line-height:1.3em;">No</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="line-height:1.3em; padding-right:1.0em;">Type</th><td class="infobox-data" style="line-height:1.3em;">Aquatic</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="line-height:1.3em; padding-right:1.0em;">Equipment</th><td class="infobox-data" style="line-height:1.3em;">Water skis, motorboat, towline</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="line-height:1.3em; padding-right:1.0em;">Venue</th><td class="infobox-data" style="line-height:1.3em;">Body of water</td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background:#eee;">Presence</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="line-height:1.3em; padding-right:1.0em;"><a href="/en/Olympic_Games" title="Olympic Games" class="wl">Olympic</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="line-height:1.3em;">No</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="line-height:1.3em; padding-right:1.0em;"><a href="/en/World_Games" title="World Games" class="wl">World Games</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="line-height:1.3em;"><a href="/en/1981_World_Games" title="1981 World Games" class="wl">1981</a><span>&nbsp;</span><span>–</span><span>&nbsp;</span><a href="/en/2017_World_Games" title="2017 World Games" class="wl">2017</a></td></tr></tbody></table> <footer class='mobile-collapse-footer mobile-collapse-btn'><b>Close</b> <span class='arrow'>▲</span></footer></div>
<figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-right wiki-thumb"><a href="/en/File:Aqua_ballet_girls_at_Waterski_Wipeout.jpg" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:Aqua_ballet_girls_at_Waterski_Wipeout.jpg"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8b/Aqua_ballet_girls_at_Waterski_Wipeout.jpg/220px-Aqua_ballet_girls_at_Waterski_Wipeout.jpg" decoding="async" data-file-width="3264" data-file-height="2448" data-file-type="bitmap" height="165" width="220" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8b/Aqua_ballet_girls_at_Waterski_Wipeout.jpg/330px-Aqua_ballet_girls_at_Waterski_Wipeout.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8b/Aqua_ballet_girls_at_Waterski_Wipeout.jpg/440px-Aqua_ballet_girls_at_Waterski_Wipeout.jpg 2x" alt="Aqua_ballet_girls_at_Waterski_Wipeout.jpg"></a><figcaption>Water skiers performing at <a href="/en/Sea_World_(Australia)" title="Sea World (Australia)" class="wl">Sea World</a> on the <a href="/en/Gold_Coast,_Queensland" title="Gold Coast, Queensland" class="wl">Gold Coast, Queensland</a>, Australia</figcaption></figure>

<p>There are water ski participants around the world, in <a href="/en/Asia" title="Asia" class="wl">Asia</a> and <a href="/en/Australia_(continent)" title="Australia (continent)" class="wl">Australia</a>, <a href="/en/Europe" title="Europe" class="wl">Europe</a>, <a href="/en/Africa" title="Africa" class="wl">Africa</a>, and <a href="/en/Americas" title="Americas" class="wl">the Americas</a>.<span class="mw-ref reference" id="cite_ref-2"><a href="#cite_note-2" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 2;"><span class="mw-reflink-text">[2]</span></a></span> In the United States alone, there are approximately 11 million water skiers and over 900 sanctioned water ski competitions every year.<span class="mw-ref reference" id="cite_ref-ws-profile_3-0"><a href="#cite_note-ws-profile-3" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 3;"><span class="mw-reflink-text">[3]</span></a></span> Australia boasts 1.3 million water skiers.<span class="mw-ref reference" id="cite_ref-4"><a href="#cite_note-4" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 4;"><span class="mw-reflink-text">[4]</span></a></span></p>

<p>There are many options for <a href="/en/Recreation" title="Recreation" class="wl">recreational</a> or <a href="/en/Competitive" title="Competitive" class="mw-redirect wl">competitive</a> water skiers. These include speed skiing, trick skiing, show skiing, slaloming, jumping, <a href="/en/Barefoot_skiing" title="Barefoot skiing" class="wl">barefoot skiing</a> and wakeski. Similar, related sports are <a href="/en/Wakeboarding" title="Wakeboarding" class="wl">wakeboarding</a>, <a href="/en/Kneeboarding_(towsport)" title="Kneeboarding (towsport)" class="wl">kneeboarding</a>,<span class="mw-ref reference" id="cite_ref-5"><a href="#cite_note-5" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 5;"><span class="mw-reflink-text">[5]</span></a></span> <a href="/en/Surface_water_sports#Discing" title="Surface water sports" class="mw-redirect wl">discing</a>, <a href="/en/Surface_water_sports#Tubing" title="Surface water sports" class="mw-redirect wl">tubing</a>, and <a href="/en/Sit-down_hydrofoil" title="Sit-down hydrofoil" class="wl">sit-down hydrofoil</a>.</p>



Water skiing is a surface water sport in which an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation over a body of water, skimming the surface on two skis or one ski. The sport requires sufficient area on a stretch of water, one or two skis, a tow boat with tow rope, two or three people , and a personal flotation device. In addition, the skier must have adequate upper and lower body strength, muscular endurance, and good balance. There are water ski participants around the world, in Asia and Australia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas. There are many options for recreational or competitive water skiers. These include speed skiing, trick skiing, show skiing, slaloming, jumping, barefoot skiing and wakeski. Similar, related sports are wakeboarding, kneeboarding, discing, tubing, and sit-down hydrofoil. 