By Jack Burden

SCOTT, Ark. — For the second time in a month, Hanna Straltsova may have broken the longest-standing world record in water skiing — once again by the slimmest of margins.

At the We Wave Independence Day Record held at Bullneck Lake, the reigning world overall champion posted a slalom score of 0@10.75m, a trick score of 9,070 points, and a 58.5-meter (192-foot) jump. Combined, those numbers edge out the current world overall record by just three points — a margin smaller than a sideslide. The existing record, set by Natallia Berdnikava in 2012, had remained untouched for over a decade until Straltsova’s recent surge.

This performance builds on Straltsova’s pending record from just last month, continuing her quiet assault on one of the sport’s toughest milestones. That both scores came at small, domestic record tournaments rather than major events only adds to the understated precision of her campaign.

On social media, Straltsova teased, “All of my best scores are yet to come in one round,” hinting that she may still be building toward a definitive peak.

While the spotlight this weekend was on Quebec — where the WWS Canada Cup opened the 2025 Overall Tour with prize money, crowds, and high-stakes battles between stars like Giannina Bonnemann Mechler and Kennedy Hansen — Straltsova stayed home, opting for the solitude of an amateur backyard tournament over center stage.

That decision mirrors her career in recent years. Since switching allegiance from Belarus to the U.S., she’s competed outside the country just twice in the last five years — both times at the WWS Canada Cup.

Still, the timing couldn’t be more compelling. With the World Championships looming later this summer, Straltsova’s form will put pressure on the field — and may reset expectations for what’s possible in women’s overall. Bonnemann Mechler, fresh off maternity leave, and the fast-rising Hansen have both shown they can win under pressure. But Straltsova now has something more: back-to-back pending world records, and the aura of inevitability that comes with them.

Thirteen years ago, Berdnikava set a mark that felt untouchable. Now, Straltsova has cleared it — twice — in the span of a month. Neither run was perfect. But both were enough.

A quarter of a buoy. Forty trick points. Twenty centimeters. That’s all that separated her from history.

Twice.

And if she’s right — that her best scores still haven’t landed in the same round — then we may not have seen the real record yet.