Offshore Sport Promotion (OSP), promoter of the current UIM Class I World Championship (WOC) series, have announced Britain's Richard Ridout as its new managing director.
Offshore Sport Promotion (OSP), promoter of the current UIM Class I World Championship (WOC) series, have announced Britain’s Richard Ridout as its new managing director. He replaces Norwegian Jann Hillestad who launched OSP six months ago.
Hillestad remains in a new role. He will now spend his time on strategic marketing aspects in relation to forthcoming races in Istanbul and Italy and other events proposed in Scandinavia next season.
Ridout is no stranger to offshore racing. For eight years he headed the team responsible for organising the Guernsey International Powerboat Week before the Guernsey Tourist Board withdrew its support.
The Norwegian sponsors behind OSP initially promised WOC financial backing for two further seasons. This however must depend very much on whether the current TV and other costly media exposure reverses the decline in the number of competitors supporting the top league. Its current states reflects a world-wide decline in all branches of powerboat competition with the WOC fleet shrinking from nearly 30 teams on its launch six years ago to 12 today.
Final Results: 1998 British Jet Sport (Personal Watercraft) Championships
- Pro Mod: Kevin Clarke 965pts
- Pro Mod Runabout Lee Jenkins 977pts
- Pro-Am Lady Runabout Ria Pichard 296.5pts
- Pro-Am Runabout 1200 Craig Mullinex 921pts
- Freestyle Kevin Sheffield 648pts
- Amateur Runabout Ltd Andy Redfern 701pts
- Amateur Runabout Superstock Andy Refern 610pts
- Pro Mod Ski Jon Rolfe 915pts
- Pro Mod Sport Kevin Clarke 625.5pts
- Amateur Ski Superstock Neil Smith 870pts
- Amateur Sport Ltd Christian Newton 715pts
- Amateur Sport Superstock Christian Newton 614.5pts
- Junior Ski Tom Turner 664pts
- Amateur Ski Ltd (Group A) Neil Smith 627pts
- Amateur Ski Ltd (Group B) Chris Ball 201pts
