Award of Distinction Spotlight: Betty Bonifay

Betty Bonifay is being awarded the USA Water Ski & Wake Sports Foundation's Award of Distinction and will be honored at the 2023 Hall of Fame Ceremony on April 15th.

Betty's name has been synonymous with swivel skiing and show skiing for decades.

Betty has traveled all over the United States sharing her passion for waterskiing and encouraging her students to compete. Hundreds of women credit her with making them the best swivel skiers they could be by incorporating ballet and the art of performing on the water.

The Bonifay Ski School was the first school for students to learn all different acts of show skiing. Betty has always looked for ways to improve the sport and the equipment including putting foam in the middle of a wooden ski to make it ride flatter on the water. Betty also took the old canvas toe straps and had neoprene toe straps designed for her ropes. She developed the braid at the end of the handle for girls to be able to use for certain tricks. Betty is a true pioneer and innovator of swivel skiing.

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Award of Distinction Spotlight: Chuck Alleger

Chuck Alleger is being awarded the USA Water Ski & Wake Sports Foundation's Award of Distinction and will be honored at the 2023 Hall of Fame Ceremony on April 15th.

Chuck is internationally recognized as a builder of barefoot water skiing and he has dedicated more than two decades to the sport by developing better boats across the Southern Region, the United States, and the world.

From 1987 to 1998, Chuck was the Chairman of the AWSA Towboat Committee and consistently worked on ways to help improve boats for skiers from all disciplines. Chuck was also the Vice President of the American Barefoot Club and ABC representative for the AWSA Board of Directors. He became a Senior Driver and Senior Judge for the American Barefoot Club and was the Chief Judge for several U.S. Barefoot Nationals. He was the Regional Director for the Southern Region for six years. After a long day of work, he would come home to spend several hours in the boat training his son and several other barefooters. Chuck was part of five U.S. Barefoot Teams as a coach or manager, and all of those teams won world championships. Chuck also participated in annual boat tests from 1987 and 2002 and helped FlightCraft to get started in the US and was a big part of MasterCraft's barefoot program for more than 10 years.

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Lori Powell Drell, Ann O'Brine Satterfield to be inducted into the IWWF Hall of Fame

U.S. barefoot water ski athlete Lori Powell Drell and adaptive water ski athlete and ambassador Ann O'Brine Satterfield will be formally enshrined into the International Waterski & Wakeboard Hall of Fame during the 40th Annual USA Water Ski & Wake Sports Foundation Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on Saturday, April 15, 2023. Lori was inducted into the USA Hall of Fame in 1999.

The IWWF International Hall of Fame recognizes, appreciates, and understands the incredible contribution each recipient has made to their discipline, community, clubs, federations, confederations, the world, and the IWWF.

The IWWF Hall of Fame can be seen in its entirety in our museum in Davenport, Florida, or online at https://iwwf.sport/international-hall-of-fame/

Lori Powell Drell is perhaps the most versatile female water skier of all time, competing and holding national titles in both the three-event and barefoot divisions since her elementary school years and world titles in barefooting. Lori’s significant barefoot skiing accomplishments span eight years and four World Championships, culminating in her 1988 Women’s World Overall Title. In five of those years, she also competed at the national level in traditional three-event skiing. Her perseverance through losses and a significant health setback to finally win the Women’s World Overall title in 1988 is a testament to Lori’s hard work, dedication, and athletic skill.

Lori was 11 years old when she was an alternate to the 1980 US Barefoot Team and 13 years old when competing on the US World Barefoot Team in 1982. At the 1982 World Championships, Lori was the first to unseat the Australian hold on female World titles. Lori’s performances at the 1986 World’s helped the US team beat Australia for the first time in a long time.

Lori demonstrated incredible sportsmanship, cultivating friendly relationships with teammates, officials, and her competitors. Lori presented herself well before the media, generating positive publicity for the sport. She is an amazing athlete and a fantastic person!

At the end of the 1986 season, a tumor was discovered on Lori’s spine. After major surgery, Lori had to significantly limit her training for the 1987 season. But in 1988, she came back to reach her peak and her ultimate goal of winning the Women’s World Barefoot Overall title at the 1988 Worlds. What made the 1988 victory even more meaningful was that her brother, Rick Powell, won the Men’s overall title. They remain the only brother and sister to have won the Men and Women’s overall titles in the same World Championships.

Ann O'Brine Satterfield was a member of the Lakeland Water Ski Club and was the first

women’s disabled water ski athlete to complete a jump on the sit-ski, which she did at the 1989 Disabled Water Ski National Championships. She is a five-time winner of the Women’s national overall title and two-time world overall champion.

Ann was a fierce competitor. She competed in slalom, trick, and jump. She skied in six National and two World Tournaments. In 1993, Ann relocated from Washington state to Winter Haven, Florida, where she began instructing adaptive water skiing. In 1994, the United States Olympic Committee honored Ann as Female Athlete of the Year.

Ann moved on from competition and to coaching disabled skiers on a regular basis at her ski school, U2CanSki, in Winter Haven and conducted clinics throughout the United States. She devoted her life to instructing both beginner and advanced skiers with disabilities, and her legacy lives on through her program, Ann’s Angels. Ann passed away in 2015.

We are so happy to honor the memory of Ann and celebrate this honor with Lori! We hope you will join us, also! To buy tickets or find hotels visit https://www.usa-wwf.org/2023-hall-of-fame