Defending Tour Champion takes 2004 series

Watkins crowned most dominate Australian competition rider ever.
Daniel Watkins (QLD) has claimed his second consecutive Australian Pro Tour of Wakeboarding championship title after having convincingly won the fifth and final round of the APTW yesterday, the Planet X Wake Slam Jam.

Watkins entered the final round leading the series standings, but the margin between the top five riders was so close that essentially Watkins needed to win the final round or risk loosing his 2003 crown to another rider in 2004.

Despite entering the finals of the Wake Slam Jam as fifth seed, Watkins stood atop the podium at the end of the day, alongside Brett Eisenhaur 2nd and Josh Sanders 3rd .

The short course on the Moya Park site in Broadbeach, which included a fun box and half rainbow slider, produced an intense final, which was contested by some of the world's best riders including globally dominant US rider Shane Bonifay. Taking the heavy competition head on, Watkins held form to display why he has been the most dominate competition wakeboarder in Australian Wakeboarding history. He stomped two flawless passes to perfection, which included a Pete Rose, 720, s-bend, whirlybird, a transfer on the fun box, a backside lipslide across the flat bar rail and a double back roll off the double up.

Unlike in 2003 when Watkins lead the series from start to finish, winning three out of the four events, this weekend was the only win for the series for Watkins after taking four third place podium finishes in the previous events.

A founder and organiser of the APTW series Watkins explained his stoke for the event series when claiming the tour title "this amazing, after working so hard to make this series happen and then seeing the kids like Dean Smith come through this year and get full benefit out of the tour is so rewarding, but now winning this thing again, it's awesome". He also credit the series as "the most legit tour Australia could possibly have at the moment with the event formats different everywhere we go and being rider run it's the way it should be".

Series Director Mick Watkins offered this statement: "The tour which has now cemented Wakeboarding's foundation for a future. I believe we have proved wakeboarding has a huge following in Australia and hope that the dedication that the riders who have organised the series have shown has some positive effects next year"

Final Results Stop 5
1st Daniel Watkins (QLD)
2nd Brett Eisenhaur (NSW)
3rd Josh Sanders (NSW)
4th Jeff Weatherall (QLD)
5th Dean Smith (NSW)
6th Justin Abbott (QLD)
7th Wayne Mawer (QLD)
8th Shane Bonifay (USA)

Series Standings
1st Daniel Watkins 360 Points
2nd Brett Eisenhaur 315 Points
3rd Jeff Weatherall 305 Points
4th Josh Sanders 290 Points
5th Dean Smith 270 Points
6th Shawn Watson 117 Points
7th Shane Bonifay 115 Points
8th Travis Osbourne 112 Points

For info, interviews & access to images & vision, contact: Mick Watkins - APTW Director - 0418 340 857 The Australian Pro Tour of Wakeboarding is a Wakeboarding Australia project. Check out the official APTW website at www.wakeboarding.com.au