Camille Duvall

Unfortunately the sport of water skiing would not become an Olympic event until 1996—a few years after Duvall left the spotlight due to neck injuries and after her decision to retire in 1993. Camille Duvall would not be able to add Olympic gold to her list of accomplishments, but that did not lessen the impact of her phenomenal achievements, including being cited in 2000 as one of Sports Illustrated's Top 100 Female Athletes of the Century.

Duvall's reach as a human being extends beyond the world of water sports and her three-decade tenure as the most dominant female athlete water skiing ever knew. She graduated from New York University's School of Broadcasting and used her communications skills in multiple arenas. She has been a television reporter and producer for various networks, including such sports powerhouses as ESPN and Fox Sports, as well as lesser known but still important venues such as MSG Network and Oxygen Sports. Duvall also published a book in 1992, Camille Duvall's Instructional Guide To Water Skiing.

After her retirement from the world of professional water skiing, Duvall—who has added her husband Byron Hero's last name to her own—has been a fixture in New York City's Upper East Side, where she has been for the past 14 years. She is a mother of two who wears many hats. Some of the work with which she is currently involved includes coaching the U.S. National Water Ski team (the first woman to hold that position); serving on the Board of Directors for New York City's 2012 bid for the Olympic Games; and serving as a member of the New York City Sports Commission. She is also the cofounder and marketing director for Duvall Competition Skis. In 2003, Duvall-Hero became the 47th person elected into the Water Ski Hall of Fame.