New Zealand's three-strong squad at the 2025 IWWF World Waterski Racing Championships in Hasselt, Belgium has been turning heads since the opening race, and Round 3 only added to the story. What began with a history-making victory for Tauranga's Ellie Hollands has grown into one of the country's most productive world championship campaigns in recent memory, with podiums stacking up across two divisions and a top-ten result in one of the event's most competitive classes.
The original format scheduled four races, but weather intervened and forced a cancellation. Three heats now constitute the full championship, with combined results across those rounds determining the overall world title winners.
Hollands has been the defining figure of the New Zealand campaign. She opened the championships with back-to-back wins, then secured a second-place finish in Round 3, splitting the British pair who claimed first and third. Across the three races she accumulated 1000 points, 1000 points, and approximately 955 points, a series record that places her firmly in contention when the final overall standings are confirmed.
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Hamilton's Amos Ratuki has been equally consistent in the Junior Boys division. A fourth in Round 1 and a third in Round 2 were followed by another third-place finish in Round 3, with point tallies of 897.92, 955.97, and a Round 3 score still to be confirmed. That steadiness across a shortened championship keeps him very much in the mix for a final world podium.
In the Men's F2 class, Kyle Taylor went up against one of the deepest fields of the entire event. Sixth-place finishes in both the first and second rounds were followed by ninth in Round 3, a run of results that should see him comfortably inside the top ten overall against strong international opposition.
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Five world titles were confirmed during the championships. Carter Robertson of Australia claimed the Men's Open crown, while compatriot Patrick Valencour took out the Junior Boys title. Ryder Tovatt of the United States won the Men's F2 class. Belgium, competing on home water, celebrated two champions of its own, with Sylvia De Spegerlerie winning the Women's Open and Christel Magdekyns taking the Women's F2 title. The junior girls' world champion was still to be decided at the time of reporting.
The loss of the fourth race due to weather compressed the margins and left less room for recovery across all divisions. For the New Zealand team, the record speaks plainly: multiple podiums, a top-ten finish in a fiercely contested class, and a presence in two of the championship's most competitive junior fields. The final standings are yet to be officially confirmed, but Belgium 2025 has already secured its place as one of New Zealand's finest outings at a Waterski Racing World Championship.
