Friday, October 20:  With still well over a month to go before the final round of the UIM-ABP Aquabike World Championship, Aquabike Promotion has confirmed that racers from 23 countries have so far entered the Grand Prix of Lake Toba, Indonesia on November 25th-26th.

They will ultimately decide the outcome of the Runabout Gp1, Ski Division GP1, Ski Ladies GP1 and Freestyle World Championships on a course with the spectacular backdrop of the volcanic lake, which forms part of the Toba Caldera UNESCO Global Geopark and is one of five UNESCO global geoparks in Indonesia.

The updated provisional entry list features 17 aquabikers in the flagship Runabout GP1 category, 16 in Ski Division GP1, 11 in Ski Ladies GP1 and four in Freestyle.  A major additional is the return of Kevin Reiterer to the scene. The 31-year-old Austrian turned professional in 2008, was UIM World Champion in 2015, 2018 and 2019 and is also a former winner of the UIM European Championship. In total, he has won seven World and European titles.

Born near Vienna, Kevin was introduced to the sport by his father Thomas and rode his first laps at the tender age of six. He was competing in the European Championship from 2003 and then joined the Austrian Hydrospace Factory Racing Team two years later, before going on to win titles across the planet. Through his global contacts in the Ski Division GP1 category, the Austrian is hoping to bring additional entries from Thailand and Cambodia to Lake Toba.

While François Medori fights it out with the likes of Jeremy Perez, Yousef Al-Abdulrazzaq, Alejandro Molina Miranda and 13 other rivals for Runabout GP1 glory, one of series leader Medori’s main rivals and the defending champion Marcus Jorgensen has been forced to withdraw his entry for what still promises to be an Indonesian classic.

Jessica Chavanne and Estelle Poret are currently separated by four points in the battle for Ski Ladies GP1 glory and Estonia’s Jasmiin Ypraus is in close attention. Jonna Borgström has been forced to withdraw through injury, but the burgeoning Ladies category will see Italian racer Naomi Benini - last year’s Runabout GP4 Ladies World Champion - make the switch to GP1 for the first time on Lake Toba. The Italian will line up in a strong international field of female racers from France, Estonia, Norway, Portugal and Monaco.

The weekend’s action will be centred around the town of Balige on the southern shores of Lake Toba with free practice, pole position heats and the first of the Motos taking place on Saturday (November 25th).  The remaining Motos take centre stage on Sunday (November 26th).

Racing on Lake Toba under the ‘United Spirit of Lake Toba’ banner will further accelerate the area as a Super Priority Tourism Destination (DPSP). The final round of the Aquabike World Championship will follow straight after the three-day UIM-ABP World Endurance Championship, with an impressive list of racers competing for the prestigious Karo, Dairi and Samosir Cups on Lake Toba on November 22nd-24th.