The Goulburn local has qualified for the 2020 IWWF World Barefoot Waterski World Championships, which are set to take place in Sydney next April.

Bell's achievement is all the more impressive due to the fact that he only has one leg.

Having lost his right leg to bone cancer as a teenager, the 43-year-old took to waterskiing late in life, but he has dedicated the last five years to improving his skills with the goal of qualifying for the World Championships.

Bell passed the mark thanks to a score of 2670 in the tricks event at the December 2019 tournament at the Georges River in Moorebank.

"The blood, sweat and tears have paid off," Bell said.

"I will be the first leg amputee to ever compete at the World Championships."

Though tricks are significantly more difficult to pull off one-legged, the scales are balanced out by the fact that those accomplished with one leg are worth double the points.

This has made the sacrifice and devotion worthwhile for Bell, who trains two to three times a week.

"As part of my routine I successfully mastered turning on my foot from a forwards to backwards position at 65kmh," he said.

While it takes Bell longer to master tricks than able-bodied athletes, his longstanding passion for sport pushed him to perfect his techniques.

"From a young age, I always had an interest in sports including swimming, surfing, mountain biking, skiing and kayaking," Bell said.

"Losing a leg did not change that. I just adapted how I approach each sport to enable me to participate. At 28 I took up waterskiing and 11 years later decided that it was time to take it to the next level and compete."

This will not be Bell's first time competing on the international stage. In 2015, he took part in the World Disabled Waterski Championships, which were held in California.

But his ambition did not end there, and Bell now has the chance to prove himself against fully-abled competitors.

"I'm looking forward to competing against the world's best and have my eye on the top 10," he said.

For further updates on Bell's progress as he prepares for next year's World Championships, be sure to follow his Facebook Page, Tinleg - Sam Bell, and his Instagram page, tinlegfootn.

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