Swiss Pro Slalom

The Swiss Pro Slalom in Clermont, Florida, began with a torrential downpour and two hour delay, but ended with Regina Jaquess’s tenth Swiss Pro Title and yet another win for world record holder Nate Smith.

The competition consisted of two rounds and a final with 10 female competitors and 20 males. The combined scores of round one and two would determine who qualified for finals.

Trinidad Espinal from Chile kicked off the competition with a score of 3@11.25m. Going into the second round, Espinal improved her performance by one buoy. Shortly after, Canadian competitor Neilly Ross tied Espinal in both rounds. These scores didn’t place them into the finals, but they were still solid runs for the young competitors.

Alexandra Garcia from the United States got 0.5@10.75 in the first round. Then into the second continued to get late down course at 11.25m, and couldn’t hang on to the slack she had through the exit gates. This caused her to fall short from the finals as well.

Freddie Winter - Skier of the Day

After two rounds of competition, the top six competitors to advance were Paige Rini, Allie Nicholson, Venessa Vieke, Whitney McClintock Rini, Regina Jaquess, and Jaimee Bull.

After passing Garcia in the second round with a score of 3.5@11.25m, Paige Rini kicked off the final round of competition. The Canadian put in a great deal of effort given her tiredness from the two rounds prior. Rini didn’t get the score she may have hoped for with 5@11.25m, but was happy to have made the finals.

After a significant improvement in the second round with a score of 2@10.75m and guaranteeing herself a spot in the finals, Nicholson took the water next. Also tired from her hard work earlier in the day, Nicholson secured the lead with another score of 2@10.75m.

Vieke from Australia guaranteed herself a spot in the finals with 2@10.75m in the second round. Vieke then tied with Paige Rini in the final and got 5@11.25m, keeping Nicholson in the lead.

Whitney Mcclintock Rini after achieving two solid scores in the first rounds, she took the lead from Nicholson in the final with 4@10.75m.

The current world record holder and chasing her tenth Swiss Pro title, Regina Jaquess followed. Jaquess is known for her solid line control and aggressive pull behind the boat. She demonstrated these skills at 10.75m in the first round. She took a huge turn at buoy two, and although got around three, couldn’t continue the momentum down the course. Consistency was her middle name in this competition as Jaquess acquired the same score in the second round, which placed her second going into the finals. With 1@10.25m, she took the lead ahead of Whitney Mcclintock Rini in the final round.

Hailing from Canada to finish off the women’s competition was World Champion and 2024 Swiss Pro Slalom Champion, Jaimee Bull. She dominated the first two rounds and stayed in the lead. Bull had to get a piece of 2@10.25m to secure her second Swiss Pro title, but couldn’t quite get through the 10.75m pass.

Jaquess took home her tenth Swiss Pro Slalom title alongside Whitney Mcclintock Rini in second, and Bull in third.

“It was a tough day, a lot of learning and battling but came out in the end,” said Jaquess. “I do have that very competitive drive, but that’s what keeps me going.”

Charlie Ross crushed the competition with 3@10.25m to pass the lead score in the first round. Ross experienced a bit of a slip up in the second, however, and scored 1.5@10.75m, although this did not affect his qualification to finals.

Freddie Winter, sustained an injury last year that kept him out of competition for a majority of the season. Winter got 0.5@10.25m on the first round. Despite that setback, he stepped up his game in the second round and secured a score of 3.25@10.25m.

Dane Mechler got 3@10.25 in the first round and 2.5@10.25m in the second.

Robert Hazelwood tied with Ross and Mechler for first place in round one with 3@10.25m. He missed the 10.75m pass in the second round, but thanks to his round one performance, it didn’t interfere with his finals qualification.

Cole McCormick earned 2@10.25m in round 1. McCormick knew he had to get at least 2@10.25m again in the second round in order to make the finals, and he did just that.

Cory Vaughn got 3@10.25m in round one. Continuing into the second, Vaughn held onto an immense amount of slack around the fourth buoy at 10.25m, but after review the judges determined his final score to be 3.5@10.25m.

Jonathan Travers consistently scored 2@10.25m in both rounds to also make it to the finals.

Nate Smith followed suit with the same score as Travers. He then set the bar high in the second round with 4@10.25m and took the lead heading into the finals.

The final round of competition was underway as the sun began to set behind the trees in Clermont.

Dailland started off strong with 2@10.25m. Mechler and Travers followed and created a three way tie for first. Ross then took the lead from those three competitors with 3@10.25m, but then Hazelwood, Winter, and Vaughn got the same score, creating a four way tie for first place.

As the lake became darker and darker, it was all up to the final skier of the night to determine if there would be a five way runoff. With tension in the air, everyone’s eyes were on the water as Smith took off. He got through the first three passes with ease. The next would determine all. He was destined for success as he turned buoys one and two in great shape, but had a worrisome safety check at three. However Smith did what he does best, and got 5@10.25m to secure the 2025 Swiss Pro Slalom Title.

“I actually kinda went for it at three, and fell out the back a little bit,” said Smith. “It scared me a little bit, but just super excited to start the season off with a win.”

Nate Smith in first, alongside him was Corey Vaughn in second, and in third was competitor Freddie Winter to cap off Sunday’s competition.

Watch the 2025 Swiss Pro Slalom

Pre Show

Webcast Replay

Scores of the Swiss Pro Slalom