(supplied/ Wake Canada)

By rdnewsNOW staff

Historic moment

Ponoka’s Bailey Rush wins gold in wakesurfing at 2025 World Games

Aug 11, 2025 | 3:34 PM

Ponoka’s Bailey Rush made history at the 2025 World Games over the weekend becoming the sport’s first athlete to win a gold medal in women’s wakesurfing at the games.

This marked the first time wakesurfing had been included at the World Games making it an important day in the history of the sport.

The 25 year old won the gold medal on Sunday, Aug. 10 in Chengdu, China where she solidified her name among the top athletes in a growing sport. To reach the finals, she dominated in the prequalification and the semifinals.

“Competing at the World Games in China with so many incredible athletes was an amazing experience,” Rush said in a media release. “Winning gold at the first-ever debut of wakesurfing and getting to sing the Canadian national anthem in front of my flag is a memory I’ll treasure forever.”

(supplied/ Wake Canada)

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Rush is also a six-time Competitive Wake Surf Association (CWSA) world champion and one of the few pro women to compete in both surf and skim style and the only female to have won world titles in both.

“I once dreamed of Olympic gold in figure skating, but chose family over that path,” Rush added. “Years later, I found wakesurfing—a true team sport where every ride, fall, and win is built on the people who lift you up. My parents made this possible, and I’m endlessly grateful for the choices and support that led us here today.”

She currently trains out of Gull Lake in central Alberta in the summertime and is a full time school teacher in Rimbey.