World Championships The first world championships began in 1949 and are held once in two years. The primary events at the water skiing meets are slalom, tricks and jumping. In slalom, which is the one-ski event, the participant has to ski around buoys that have been laid around the course. Simple isn’t it? So would it seem, but be reassured its one of the pleasant sights to the eye. The idea is to zigzag around the course without falling or losing balance. A particular number of buoys have to be negotiated to score points. The next event that is of utmost importance in the world championships is the tricks. While the first timers use two skis, experts perform on one. A participant must perform tricks while making two passes that exist for a few seconds. It is during this trick that athletes use the hands to stand on water and use the feet to stay fastened to the boat. The participant slips their feet into a strap that is attached to the towline. The jump event is performed over a ramp. This is the reason why footwear is a good investment a skier should make. The point of contact between the body and the water would be this gear and it should also be strong enough to take the impact during jumps and other stunts. The points are awarded by marking the distance the participant jumps. Each person gets three chances jump as far as possible from the ramp. Major championships in this event are the world and the Pan Am championships.