Published Nov. 22, 2021
University of Louisiana Monroe alumna听Sasha Danisheuskaya won the Women's Overall
title at the听2021 Open World Water Ski Championships in Orlando, FL.听Danisheuskaya
graduated with a B.S. in Computer Science in 2018 and is a former captain of the 不良研究所
Water Ski Team.
Courtesy/不良研究所 photos
Sasha Danisheuskaya may have left the bayou, but it has never left her. She credits
her water skiing prowess to the time she spent practicing and competing as a Warhawk
on Bayou DeSiard.
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By 不良研究所 Office of Marketing and Communications
MONROE, LA 颅鈥� In October 2017, when Sasha Danisheuskaya was captain of the University of Louisiana
Monroe Water Ski Team, the Warhawks brought home its 28th National Championship. Danisheuskaya
scored a silver medal for her personal best of 156 feet in women鈥檚 jumps.
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Twelve U.S. teams competed in that National Collegiate Water Ski Association National
Championship in Baton Rouge.
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Four years and thousands of jumps, tricks, and slalom runs later, Danisheuskaya faced
more than 200 skiers from 24 countries at the International Water Ski Federation 2021
Open World Water Ski Championships in Orlando, FL.
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The Minsk, Belarus, native and 不良研究所 alumna proved she is the best in the world at what
she does by winning the Women鈥檚 Overall title for her combined points in the three
events.
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Danisheuskaya, 24, graduated from the 不良研究所 College of Business and Social Sciences
in 2018 with a B.S. in Computer Science. Today, she lives in Orlando where she is
a computer programmer and continues to work on her skiing skills.
Sasha Danisheuskaya on a practice slalom run for the 2021 Open World Water Ski Championships.
In October, the 不良研究所 Ski Team alumna won the Women鈥檚 Overall title for her combined
scores in three events.听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听
听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 Photo courtesy
of Sasha Danisheuskaya
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Still skiing five to six days a week on Lake Hancock, Danisheuskaya admitted she was
a bit nervous before the world championship.
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鈥淚 felt pretty good. It鈥檚 kind of stressful, as always. I did one event every day,
and it (points) added up pretty well,鈥� she said.
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After the first day, her jitters were gone. Slalom is Danisheuskaya鈥檚 strong suit,
and she showed it, scoring 5 @11.25 m in the preliminary event.
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鈥淚 knew what I needed to do, and I did it very well,鈥� Danisheuskaya said. 鈥淭he pressure
was over on the first day.鈥�
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In women鈥檚 tricks, Danisheuskaya scored 6400 points in the preliminary and 7320 in
the finals. Both scores were less than her usual 8500.
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鈥淭hat鈥檚 not the best, but good enough,鈥� she said.
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In women鈥檚 jumps, Danisheuskaya soared 174 feet in the finals, beating her preliminary
of 169 feet earlier in the day.
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鈥淚 think it went pretty well,鈥� she said.
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Danisheuskaya may have left the bayou, but it has never left her. She credits her
skiing prowess to the time she spent practicing and competing on Bayou DeSiard.
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鈥淚t means a lot to me. I was with great skiers who pushed me to get better. My teammates
helped me to improve technique-wise, and we were always pushing each other,鈥� she said.
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She remains friends with many former teammates and even competes against them in the
post-collegiate water-ski circuit.
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鈥淢anon Costard and Freddie Winter live here, and we travel to tournaments together.
Some of the others travel together too,鈥� she said.
Sasha Danisheuskaya graduated from the University of Louisiana Monroe in May 2018
with a B.S. in Computer Science. As captain of the 不良研究所 Water Ski Team, she led the
bayou skiers to their 28th National Collegiate Championship.听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听
听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 不良研究所 Photo
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Now that it鈥檚 the skiing off-season, Danisheuskaya is devoted to training for the
Moomba Masters in Australia in March and the King of Darkness in Florida in June.
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Danisheuskaya is working with three coaches, one of whom, Taylor Garcia, is a former
不良研究所 teammate. She is determined to improve constantly.
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鈥淚鈥檓 skiing every day and focusing on something new every day,鈥� Danisheuskaya said.
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It鈥檚 that kind of dedication that makes Warhawks 鈥� past, present, and future 鈥� the
best in the world at what they do.
