IWWF MALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR 2009 and ABC Male Athlete of the year! 

          December 20^th, 2009 The International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation announced Keith St. Onge as the Male Athlete of the Year.  This is the second time Keith has one this prestigious award and the only Barefoot Athlete to win the award.  Keith was chosen from among the top Competitors in the following Water sports disciplines, 3 Event, Racing, Wakeboard, Cable ski, Cable wakeboard and Disabled.

St. Onge is once again proving he is the most dominant international force in Barefoot Waterskiing.  He turned in another unbelievable performance in 2009, repeating as the World Overall Champion in New Zealand. He once again reset the world trick record, this time at an amazing 11,250 and he retains a stranglehold on the world record in Wake Slalom.

St. Onge also turned in an incredible performance at the World Games in Taiwan helping bring the U.S. team to victory, as well as winning the individual Gold Overall medal on the international stage. 

Stateside, he completed “barefooting’s triple crown” by capturing the U.S. National Championship for the tenth time in 12 years.  This year, he not only won the overall championship but also the gold in tricks and slalom. Just weeks after his Nationals success, KSO switched gears and finished second in the endurance figure eight championship, “Footstock.” 

St. Onge’s participation in all forms of barefooting makes him a respected ambassador of the sport, recognized around the world. He is now turning his attention to growing the sport by training the next generation of Barefooters.

          KSO recently joined forces with former World Champion David Small to create the World Barefoot Center in Winter Haven, Florida.  The WBC is nurturing young barefooters to rise to the top of the competitive world by offering sponsorship programs and all levels of training.   St. Onge is also inventing new equipment and training techniques to give his students the edge.  Everyone will soon want to be on Team WBC.

Throughout all of his success, St. Onge has developed a loyal following of fans because of his humble and kind nature.  The best barefoot water skier in the world still pitches in to help at tournaments and even drive the pick up boat.

And St. Onge is showing no signs of slowing down.

“I am staying motivated and looking ahead to Germany in 2010.  I want to raise the bar on the record and the world,” says St. Onge.

Write-up provided by Betsy Anderson

St. Onge Bio

Number of Tournaments Skied in the Past Year

           Keith participated in 11total Tournaments in 2009

          7 Traditional barefoot tournaments

          1 Regional Championship

          1 National Championship

          2 Endurance tournaments

          1 National Endurance Championship 

Number of International Tournaments Skied in the Past Year

          Keith participated In 2 International Tournaments

          2008 World Championships (held in Jan 09)

           2009 World Games

World Ranking

          Based on the 2008 WSL Keith is currently ranked;

                    3rd Overall

                    2nd Slalom

                    4th Trick

                    6th Jump

          Based on the 2008 World Championships Results:

                    1st Overall

                    1st Slalom

                    1st Trick

                    3rd Jump

Medals at World Titles

                   23 World Championship Medals

                    7 Team Medals

                   16 Individual Medals

                    9 Gold

                    3 Silver

                    4 Bronze

          Keith has won individual medals in all but one World Championships. (His 1st one)

World Records

          Keith has held 7 world records

          Currently holds the World Slalom and Trick records

                    20.6

                    11,250

Confederation Ranking

          1st Overall

          1st Trick

          1st Slalom

          1st Jump

Confederation Records

          This confederation does not keep records but if they did I am confident Keith would own all of them.

National Ranking

          1st Overall

          1st Trick

          1st Slalom

          1st Jump

National Records

          Keith owns all 3 National Open Pro records

                    20.6 Slalom

                    11,250 Tricks

                    25.8 Jump

New Personal Bests

12,650 Tricks

25.7 Jump (25.8 was back in 1998)

New Skills Learned

          I think the best new skill that he has learned this year, is the ability to combine the most difficult barefoot tricks into a 15 second routine at standards that the world has never witnessed.

Contributions and Support to Their National Team

          Keith Is the best ambassador that the US team has he Is ALWAYS helping new and seasoned skiers everywhere he goes.  He'll give pointers, advice and even training to help progress a skier in their quest to learn and improve.   

World Contributions to the Sport

          Keith travels the world teaching and promoting the sport, yes It Is his business, but he does it with a great personal touch.  He is regarded as the best in the world by an over whelming majority of his peers.  He has sponsored many tournaments, clinics around the world and is the premier sponsor of the 2010 World Championships.

          He represented the USA at the 2009 World Games and 2008 World Championships (held in 2009)

Confederation Contributions to the Sport

          Pretty much same as above, he is very good at sharing his time and donations across the globe.

National Contributions to the Sport

          Again more like above, and always willing to lend a hand to help out at the tournament scene.

Local Contributions to the Sport

          Owns and operates a very successful ski school in Winter Haven, FL.  He offers promotional deals to many skiers such as skiing on the ski school's team, deep discounts for aspiring skiers, etc.

Time Donated Coaching Other Skiers.

          Every year Keith donates too many hours of coaching to actually count.  He recently announced his support to the 2010 World Championships in several ways of which include free coaching / training sessions.

          He also provides extreme training programs for young potential world competitors who are serious about being the next world champion, at a fraction of the cost that it takes to actually run it.

Promotion of the Sport

          I can not think of any single person in this world that promotes the sport more, on a global basis, as Keith does.  He is highly regarded as an ambassador of barefooting.

New Skiers Introduced to Sport

          Too many to name and he is constantly taking on personal projects to develop new future champions.

Officials Ratings Held

Keith is an assistant Judge, Driver, and Scorer

Extracurricular Activities

Keith enjoys Kick boxing, working out and biking.

Other important information