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Marsha Fitzgerald – 2008 Hall of Fame Inductee

USA Water Ski has today reported that the American Water Ski Educational Foundation’s 10-member Hall of Fame Selection Committee has announced that Kris LaPoint and Water Ski Racing’s Marsha Fitzgerald will be the 2008 AWSEF Water Ski Hall of Fame inductees. The induction ceremony will take place April 19 at the Omni Orlando Resort in ChampionsGate, Florida. Read about the inducation here.

LaPoint, widely considered one of the icons of slalom skiing, set the world slalom record six times during his career, the first one coming at the age of 13. He was a seven-time Masters slalom champion and nine-time national slalom champion. LaPoint will join his younger brother, Bob, in the AWSEF Hall of Fame. Bob was inducted in 2006.

Fitzgerald, one of the most decorated female water ski racers of all time, won the 1989 womens’ world water ski racing title and the 1986 Catalina Ski Race. She was the bronze medalist at the 1985 and 1987 Water Ski Racing World Championships, and she was a nine-time national champion. Fitzgerald will be the first female water ski racer to be inducted into the AWSEF Hall of Fame.

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When I asked former two time World Champions Liz Hobbs MBE to comment on Marsha she said; ‘About every decade in sport, especially individual sports, an outstanding athlete comes to the fore and tends to stay there for several years. Marsha was one of those athletes. She spent many years dedicated to Waterski Racing and to training to be the best. She was always a tough opposition and a great credit to the United States whenever she took to the water. More importantly she was an athlete that always tried to put back into this great sport by teaching those who were to follow in her footsteps the “tricks of the trade”. She represented the United States with great dignity and personality, even in the face of adversity, and will go down as one of the great ski racers of our time.

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I also asked Australia’s Leanne Hickey (now Burge) to comment on Marsha and she said; ‘I came runner-up to Marsha in the 1989 World Championships held in Italy. Out of the four races I won the first one, came fourth in the second, third in the third, and second in the fourth. Although I won the first, Marsha dominated the next two races with two clear wins. She was an incredible ski racer and competitor. As I was only seventeen at the time I was completely in awe of her incredible skiing and her incredibly fit and strong physique. She was a complete athlete. Obviously completely prepared for competition in every aspect. As any athlete in any sport would know, to dominate in competition at world level is an amazing feat. Marsha only had to officially start in the last race to be crowned World Champion. It must have been devastating to fall and injure herself and then not be present at the awards ceremony. However nothing could change the fact that she was World Champion, and a very deserved one at that. It was a privilege and inspiration to compete against such a class act. Such a champion should surely be in your Hall of Fame.’

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In more than 10 years of national and world-level competition, Marsha Fitzgerald accumulated an extremely impressive resume.

National Championship Titles
1984 U.S Women’s Open National Champion Runner Up
1986 U.S. Women’s Open National Champion
1987 U.S. Women’s Open National Champion
1988 U.S. Women’s Open National Champion (swept both rounds)

National Marathon Series Titles
1980 Intermediate Women’s Runner-up
1981 Intermediate Women’s Runner-up
1982 Intermediate Women’s Champion
1983 Intermediate Women’s Runner-up
1984 Women’s Open 3rd place
1985 Women’s Open 3rd place
1986 Women’s Open Champion
1987 Women’s Open Champion (won 10 out of 12 races including 9 in a row)
1988 Women’s Open 3rd place (missed part of season with a knee injury)
1989 Women’s Open Champion (won all 8 races she entered)

Regional Titles
1981 Region II Women’s Open Runner-up
1982 Region II 16-20 Women’s Hi-Point Champion
1983 Region II Women’s Open Runner-up
1984 Region II Women’s Open Hi-Point Champion (undefeated season)
1984 Region II 21-29 Women’s Hi-Point Champion (undefeated season)
1985 Region II Women’s Open Hi-Point Runner-up
1986 Region II Women’s Open Hi-Point Champion (undefeated season)
1987 Region II Women’s Open Runner-up
1987 Region II 21-29 Women’s Runner-up (won all 3 races she entered)
1988 Region II Women’s Open 3rd place (missed part of season with a knee injury)
1989 Region II Women’s Open Hi-Point Champion (undefeated season)

Other U.S. Titles
1986 Catalina Ski Race Women’s Overall Champion
1987 Nor-Cal Championships Women’s Overall Champion (swept both rounds)
1987 Pacific Coast Championships Women’s Overall Champion (swept both rounds)
1988 Nor-Cal Championships Women’s Overall Champion (swept both rounds)
1988 Pacific Coast Championships Women’s Overall Champion (swept both rounds)
1989 Nor-Cal Championships Women’s Overall Champion (swept both rounds)
1989 Pacific Coast Championships Women’s Overall Champion (swept both rounds)

US World Team Selection Ranking
1985 — #2 ranked woman on the US World Team
1987 — #1 ranked woman on the US World Team
1989 — #1 ranked woman on the US World Team

World Championship Titles
1985 World Team Gold Medalist
1985 Women’s World Bronze Medalist
1988 World Team Silver Medalist
1988 Women’s World Bronze Medalist
1989 World Team Gold Medalist
1989 Women’s World Champion

World Championship Individual Race Podium Finishes
1985 Race #1 3rd place
1985 Race #3 2nd place
1988 Race #1 1st place
1988 Race #2 2nd place
1989 Race #1 2nd place
1989 Race #2 1st place
1989 Race #3 1st place

Other International Titles
1986 Giro Del Lario (Italy) Women’s Overall Champion
1986 Botany Bay (Australia) Women’s Overall 3rd place
1986 Women’s World Cup Champion
(first and only US Woman to win the World Cup of Water Ski Racing comprised of the Catalina Ski Race in Long Beach, CA; the Giro Del Lario Race on Lake Como, Italy and the Botany Bay World Series Races in Sydney, Australia)

Throughout her ski racing career, Fitzgerald was not only a top skier and a great competitor, but volunteered her time and expertise to serve on several boards and committees.
1983 NWSRA Secretary
1984 NWSRA Region II Secretary
1986 NWSRA International Committee Secretary
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