Four world champions were crowned at the Old Doha Port Grand Prix of Qatar on Saturday, with Estelle Poret, Oliver Koch Hansen, François Medori and Roberto Mariani securing UIM-ABP World Aquabike Championship titles in dramatic fashion.
Poret claimed her maiden Ski Ladies GP1 crown while Koch Hansen took his first Ski GP1 title. Medori earned a third world championship in Runabout GP1 with a sensational comeback victory after series leader Jéremy Perez suffered a devastating crankshaft failure on the parade lap. Italian Roberto Mariani held off a fierce late challenge from Team Abu Dhabi’s Rashid Al-Mulla to seal the Freestyle crown.
Emirati Amer Hawair won the inaugural Runabout GP2 Asian Continental Championship title despite finishing fourth in the final moto, with Saudi Arabia’s Daoud Kaloti taking the race victory.
Poret Overcomes Injury Setback to Claim Maiden Title
Estelle Poret arrived in Qatar defending a 15-point lead over Jasmiin Ypraus in the championship standings. Benedicte Drange had been eliminated from title contention after a fuel pump failure in Moto 1, though the Norwegian remained determined to end the season on a high.
Jessica Chavanne claimed the hole shot in the decisive third moto from Emy Garcia, Drange, Poret and Ypraus. Chavanne held her lead into lap two before falling off her ski on lap three, tumbling down the order.
Drange surged clear at the front while Ypraus mounted pressure on Poret, passing her rival to claim second place. The French rider held on to third, which proved sufficient to secure her first world title by the narrowest of margins.
Drange took her second victory of the weekend by 8.426 seconds, with Ypraus finishing second in both the moto and the final championship standings. Poret’s third-place finish also secured her the Grand Prix title.
I don’t know if I have the words. A lot of work went into being here. I am so happy after three years of injury. I want to thank my mechanics for the job they did this season. I also want to thank my brother Jéremy, my parents, my husband. It’s not only me. It’s the people around me that made this happen.
Koch Hansen Holds Nerve as Bossche Charges Through
Oliver Koch Hansen started the final Ski GP1 moto with an 18-point advantage over Jéremy Poret and needed only a steady finish to claim his first world title. Toshi O’Hara had already confirmed the bronze medal position after finishing second in Moto 2.
Kevin Reiterer stormed into the lead at the start from Koch Hansen, Valentin Dardillat and O’Hara. Outgoing world champion Quinten Bossche started at the rear of the field after sharing his ski with Garcia, who had experienced problems in the Ski Ladies GP1 race.
Bossche carved through the field in treacherous conditions with large rollers sweeping across the course. The Belgian moved up to sixth, overtook Poret for fifth, then capitalised on an O’Hara mistake to grab fourth. He continued his charge, passing Dardillat into the podium positions.
With six minutes remaining, Bossche trailed leader Reiterer by 12.335 seconds. He swept past Koch Hansen and closed on Reiterer, eventually making the decisive move to claim his second victory of the weekend and fifth from eight starts this season.
Reiterer’s second place secured the Grand Prix title while Koch Hansen’s third-place finish confirmed his maiden world championship. Poret finished fourth after Dardillat received a one-lap penalty for missing a buoy.
It feels amazing. I had a good start. I knew the others would go all-in. They had nothing to risk and I had a lot to risk. I wanted to be stable and try and keep my position. Everything worked out this weekend. It was an incredible race. Quinten was battling for the win but it was more important for me to win overall. Since I was 12 years old, I worked towards this and I am now 22. It has taken me 10 years to get to this moment. I am so happy.
Grand Prix winner Reiterer reflected on a challenging weekend for his team.
This weekend as a team was really tough. We had boat issues the whole time. We kept improving in each Moto. It paid off in the end. Coming out with the win is phenomenal!
Medori Seizes Miracle Title After Perez Heartbreak
The Runabout GP1 title showdown produced the most dramatic conclusion of the weekend. Jéremy Perez had taken pole position for the final moto with a nine-point lead over François Medori, whose crankshaft failure on Friday had seemingly ended his championship hopes.
Disaster struck Perez on the parade lap when his Easy Rider ski stopped, preventing him from taking the start. The distraught Frenchman was forced to watch from the shoreline as his championship rival lined up at the back of the grid needing just nine points to claim the title.
György Kasza took the hole shot from Qatar’s Waleed Al-Sharshani, Pierre-François Savelli and Yousef Al-Abdulrazzaq. Medori immediately began his charge through the field, climbing to ninth then sixth heading into lap two. Perez joined the race a lap behind in 20th place.
Medori continued his relentless advance, moving into fourth on lap four before passing Al-Abdulrazzaq for third. He then overtook Al-Sharshani to claim second place and set his sights on leader Kasza.
The Corsican completed his remarkable comeback with a stunning victory by 4.082 seconds, confirming his third world championship in the most improbable circumstances. Al-Sharshani finished second to secure the Grand Prix title, with Kasza taking third in both the moto and the championship standings.
I came here 16 points in front of Jéremy and yesterday we broke the engine. There was maybe one chance in one million to win. I decided to push my maximum and I tried to take this chance. We always need to be positive. I start from last position and I win the Moto. My team did an incredible job. I am really happy with this title. It was really hard to start at the back. I passed a lot of riders. I win the Endurance and the European Championship. It has been a fantastic season.
Mariani Withstands Al-Mulla Pressure in Freestyle
Roberto Mariani arrived in Qatar with a slender seven-point lead over Rashid Al-Mulla in the Freestyle championship after the Team Abu Dhabi rider’s dominant display in the opening moto on Friday evening.
Kuwait’s Aziz Al-Armeli led the second moto scoring early with 136 points before Frenchman Steven Royer moved ahead with 163 points. Massimo Accumolo, already assured of the bronze medal, posted 208 points to take the provisional lead.
Bader Al-Abdullah scored 185 points for fourth place before Mariani confirmed the world title with a varied programme that earned 223 points from the judges. Al-Mulla completed the championship with a spectacular performance including a double back flip, scoring 251 points to win both the moto and the Grand Prix title.
Hawair Takes Asian Continental Title
Amer Hawair secured the inaugural Runabout GP2 Asian Continental Championship despite finishing fourth in the final moto. The Emirati had carried a 10-point cushion over fellow countryman Khalid Al-Maazmi into the decider.
Al-Maazmi initially crossed the line first ahead of Daoud Kaloti and Mohamed Abumaali, with Hawair in fourth. However, Al-Maazmi received a 40-second penalty for a start infringement, promoting Kaloti to victory by 19.783 seconds from Mohamed Abumaali. Hawair moved up to third, which proved sufficient to claim the championship title.
Neil Perkins, is a seasoned sports journalist and PR professional. Educated at Adams’ Grammar School, Newport, he developed a lifelong passion for sport, including football, cricket, golf, and snooker.
Perkins began his career as a trainee accountant before moving into sports journalism in 1986 with Motoring News, covering events worldwide. In 1990, he founded NDP Publicity Services in Shropshire, specialising in sports public relations. Over three decades, he has worked across 114 countries for governments, sporting federations, royalty, celebrities, and major events such as the Commonwealth Games, Asian Games, and Winter Olympics.
Outside work, he follows Ipswich Town FC, enjoys fishing in Spain and Shropshire, and travels to destinations including Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Catalunya, and Mexico.
