MALAYSIA’S Aaliyah Yoong Hanifah was clearly on cloud nine as she continues to glitter in the 2025 IWWF World Waterski Championships with an incredible performance in the finals of the jump and tricks disciplines in Recetto, Italy.
Just as the nation marked its 68th anniversary of independence in Putrajaya on Aug 31, Aaliyah battled her way to a grand sixth position finish in the jump event and an overall seventh placing in the world against a powerful tide some 9,000km away in Italy.
The results in jump and overall are Aaliyah’s highest placing at the World championships. She is the first Asian women to finish in top 10 in jump, tricks and overall, in a World Championships.
The darling of Malaysia’s water-ski, ranked Asia’s No. 1, concluded her journey in the World Championships with an overall combined total score of 2343.91 points in the three disciplines (slalom, tricks and jump) to outshine 20 other contestants in the women’s open category.
Aaliyah cleared a distance of 51.0 meters (167 feet) in jump final to set a new national record while in tricks she completed her routine with a score of 7490 points to finish in 10th position overall. American Hanna Straltsova, a 10-time champion, registered a distance of 56.8m (186 feet) in jump to snatch the gold medal.
A beaming Aaliyah said: “The 2025 World Championships has been a joyful adventure for me. I am very excited with my performance in both jump and overall. To finish in sixth place in jump and seventh overall in the world is an incredible personal achievement for me.
“When I arrived here, I was looking to get into the finals of jump and tricks, and reach top 10 in jump or tricks and the possibility of a top 10 for the overall event. I am excited to have achieved my targets,” she added.
“It is so exciting to be involved and be busy in the finals, much better than to be spectating all day. I shall now return to Florida to continue my studies and prepare for the upcoming SEA Games,’ said Aaliyah.
However her father cum personal coach, Hanifah Yoong said that 51m might well mean a change in the course of her waterski career. He explained that he never expected this and neither did Aaliyah.
We both thought just by setting a PB of 49.5m would be a good job then. But to reach well past the 50m milestone which many top up and coming jumpers get stuck in means her trajectory to world podium might well be jump now instead of tricks.
“Now she’s looking more like a jump champion than a tricks champion,” Hanifah added.
“I expect her to be near the top 3 in jump and in overall in another 6 years’ time if everything goes according to her plan. That would mean watch out for her in the 2031 World Championship when she would only be 28 years old then.”
