Mark Bozicevic has been involved in waterskiing for more than 40 years. Mark’s multi-faceted role as a compe itor, organizer, official and innovator has left an amazing legacy. He was a true novice when
he and two friends went to their first tournament, Spaceland, 1973. He learned that you don’t trailer your outboard to a tournament. None of the three aspiring slalom skiers got to buoy 2. They bought a pair of used Cypress Gardens jumpers, took the binders off their shared pair of trick skies and presto! At that tournament, Mark became a 3-event water skier. In 1974, Mark joined the Ski Club of the Palm Beaches and quickly tried to learn all the acts for the show ski team. At a Cypress Gar- dens club competition, Mark skied the role of the unsuspecting tourist who finds a handle on the beach and barefoots away. His first Regionals was in Miami in 1978, his first Nationals in DuQuoin in 1982 and his first World Championship in Chile in 2018. He held the Florida State slalom record in Men III and again in Men VII. He has skied in 30 National championships. Mark’s crowning achievement is the collaborative work with Palm Beach County Parks and Recreation to establish the public water ski facility in Okeeheelee Park. The County provided the water and Mark organized a work force of club members, friends and community resources to fund and to build all of the facilities necessary to accommodate major tournament events. Since opening in 1982, The Ski Club of the Pam Beaches has host- ed numerous National, Southern Regional and Florida Water Ski Champi- onships, as well as the 1989 World Water Ski Championships. Mark has been an official for nearly all of his skiing career. He has served as a Florida Representative on the Southern Region Council and has assisted as an announcer at several National tournaments. Mark was chosen by AWSA for the vital role of Head of Tournament Operations for the 1989 World Championships.