AQUABIKE
In the race for the Ladies title Jennifer Menard’s fifth win of the
season moved her to within a point of the World Championship
after beating rival Estelle Poret, with Sandra Rodriguez Fernandez
Rodriguez in third.
In Freestyle Rok Florjancic was pushed all the way by younger
brother Nac in the penultimate heat of the year, narrowly taking
his seventh win of the year to close out and retain his World
title. Despite problems with his bike during his routine and being
matched on 85 points by his bother he was given the win by the
judges for his better points tally for style.
For the second consecutive year the bothers from Maribor in
Slovenia were the World number one and two, third place in the
Championship going to Italy’s Roberto Mariani.
The final heats of the year saw Teddy Pons, Jeremy Poret and
Jennifer Menard cap a near perfect weekend for France and
celebrate a famous World Championship hat-trick in Runabout, Ski
and Ski Ladies.
Five years after winning his first World title in Liuzhou in 2009,
Teddy Pons regained it in the same city after winning race 1, but
unlike his Wold title winning compatriots was not able to celebrate
the overall Grand Prix win, breaking down on lap 13.
Race honours went to Sweden’s Lars Akerblom, his first win on
the UIM-ABP tour also giving him his first Grand Prix title finishing
ahead of Francois Medori who took third overall, with Poland’s
Andrzej Wisniewski taking his first overall podium finish in second
place after finishing third in both races.
Jeremy Poret signed off his season in the most emphatic manner,
completing the race win double over MacClugage to win his
second Grand Prix of the year and reclaim the World title he last
held in 2012.
Poret led from start-to-finish but was unable to shake off the
persistent challenge from MacClugage, but held on to take the
chequered flag, his fifth win of the year. Spain’s Nacho Armillas
grabbed his second podium of the year finishing in third place in
both races.
In Ski Ladies Jennifer Menard celebrated her first full season on
the UIM-ABP tour rounding out her year with a sixth race win and
third GP title to become World Champion for the first time, finishing
ahead of Spain’s Sandra Fernandez Rodriguez and title rival and
World runner-up Estelle Poret, Marta Sorrentino taking third overall
in the Championship standings..
Going into the final heat of Freestyle just one question remained
unanswered, could the World Champion Rok Florjancic produce
the perfect routine and get the perfect score?
After watching both Roberto Mariani and then brother Nac
produce two outstanding performances, scoring 84 and 95 points
respectively, the 29-year-old from Maribor in Slovenia produced a
near-perfect set of tricks, sealing his second consecutive World title
with a score off 99 out of a 100.
At the end of an enthralling, exciting and totally captivating 2014
the French trio of Teddy Pons, Jeremy Poret and Jennifer Menard
reigned but it was ‘The Rok’ who reigned-supreme.
24 | H20 MAGAZINE - NOVEMBER 2014
h2oracing.net
