WATERSKIING: Molly and Sade Ferguson have made a triumphant return to Roma following their standout performances at the Junior Waterskiing World Championships in Sesena, Spain.

While Molly made the cut to place in the finals of both slalom and jump, it was Sade who stunned onlookers by claiming gold for Australia in the jump event.

Placing second overall to qualify for the final, Sade produced three consistently good jumps to outscore the final twelve, upsetting Ukrainian rivals Sonya Maksimenkova and Stasya Prosvetova.

"I always dreamed of winning but I never thought it would become a reality - I was over the moon,” she said.

"Even though I went into the event ranked second in the world, I always knew Sonia and Stasya would be the closest competitors but I didn't think I could pull a win.”

Sade recounted the moment her and the Australian team realised she had claimed the gold.

"All my team mates were watching from the bank across from where the competitors were stationed and I just remember waiting for the final scores and when it came through, all these green and gold uniforms came charging.”

Molly was quick to point out the significance of her sister's achievement.

"Everyone was pretty emotional because it's been a fair while since Australia has placed on the podium or come first,” she said.

With the event being live streamed, a large contingent of the girls' closest family and friends watched their achievements play out on their computer screens.

The Australian team of eight placed fourth overall, an incredible milestone for a competition featuring more than 140 waterskiers from 30 countries.