2017-06-17 00:00
ADDENDUM: Apologies - there was an error in the final post at the end of Event 1 where we stated that the winning team was Ozone. In fact there were two teams with equal points at the top of the scores (Ozone and Gin) - the tie was broken by comparing which team had the most wins and the prize was awarded to the Gin team - apologies and congratulations are therefore given to team Gin.2017-05-27 18:00
The prizegiving was held at 19:30 at the HQ
Congratulations to our winners Luc Armant, Méryl Delferriere and team Ozone (Open, Women and Teams)
The next event begins on 17th June in Nish, Serbia - see you there
2017-05-27 11:08
We are sad to report that two serious accidents occured during yesterday's task. Both pilots are now being cared for in hospital and we will be keeping their families informed on progress - nothing further, however, will be posted here.
After six days of intensive flying we feel that the sportive objective of the competition has been fully realised and it is not necessary to extend the event any further. Within the rules of the Paragliding World Cup, therefore, the competition is now over.
Today is allocated to free flying - the buses will leave HQ for Val Pelouse - a west facing takeoff - at 13:00.
The Prizegiving ceremony will take place at 19:00 at the Headquarters.
2017-05-26 20:12
Thats it - the final pilot flew in with just 20 mins of task time left - it was an impressive effort to watch.
All the pilots are now back, the scores have been calculated - and today had radically changed them.
The results are now available online.
Timings for tomorrow are unchaned - the buses will leave at 10:00 - last day and all to fly for
2017-05-26 19:47
Well done to Yvonne Dathe, the last pilot in the air has just made goal after nearly 7 hours in the air.2017-05-26 19:05
Alexander Frider and Yvonne Dathe are still flying. Alexander is 8 km from goal. Yvonne is 18 km from goal.2017-05-26 17:52
Well done to Benedicte Saury first lady in goal today.2017-05-26 17:19
Today will have radically changed the scores, none of the top 10 in goal today are currently in the overall top 10.2017-05-26 17:17
Followed by Jacques Fournier, Michele Boschi, Charles Cazaux, Benoit Outters, Honorin Hamard and Jared Anderson2017-05-26 17:15
Andreas Malecki and Idris Birch were next in.2017-05-26 17:14
Those behind are now coming into goal thick and fast - phew!2017-05-26 17:05
Clement Latour has just made it to goal, all that X-Alps training obviously helped endure the difficult last part of this course.2017-05-26 16:55
Clement Latour is 3 km out and is 502 m above the ground, maybe all his X-Alps experience is going to help hang in here and get to goal.2017-05-26 16:52
The leaders are all landing short, what a shame after such a great task. It's difficult to tell whether many pilots further back will make it.2017-05-26 16:48
It's really stable there is absolutely nowhere to get a top up2017-05-26 16:47
The top 12 have passed the last turn point but are all low.2017-05-26 16:44
Maxime Pinot has just come into view above the trees in front of goal, to woops and cheers2017-05-26 16:44
The top 12 behind are on impossible glides2017-05-26 16:42
Thomas Gury and Pierre Remy are at 520m and not getting a climb they really need a thermal, none of those behind will make it without a climb.2017-05-26 16:40
Maxime should have enough to glide to goal.2017-05-26 16:40
Pierre Remy, Thomas Gury and Jean Marc Caron have got the last turn point2017-05-26 16:39
The top 12 are quite low having raced along the ridge, I think there may be some people landing on cows - se vacher, today!2017-05-26 16:37
Maxime has got the last turn point2017-05-26 16:36
Looking at the overalls, today should really consolidate Luc Armant, Pierre Remy, Thomas Gury and Ulrich Prinz's position in the top ten - as long as they get to goal and don't land short2017-05-26 16:30
Maxime is keeping his height, 400m higher than those behind.2017-05-26 16:29
It's alternately Boomerang 11s, Enzo 3s amongst the leaders, it's great to see the wings are perfectly matched.2017-05-26 16:27
Maxime has just passed the village of Arvillard, 3km ahead of Ulrich Prinz and Clement Latour2017-05-26 16:25
It's supposed to be 'BEHIND every great man there is a great woman', in the case of Méryl Delferriere, she's well AHEAD of boyfriend Simon Pellissier.2017-05-26 16:23
Méryl Delferriere's Dad is here with us in HQ, very emotional watching Meryl who is 17th at the moment, she was 13 when she started flying with very proud Dad. Well done to both, what a lovely story.2017-05-26 16:21
Maxime Pinot is in a 4+ m a second climb, his glide ratio has gone below 10:1 to goal, he's on final glide to goal.2017-05-26 16:20
Leading ladies Méryl Delferriere and Laurie Genovese are in the top 20.2017-05-26 16:17
On the way back to end of speed they need to get turn point 5 on a low hill to the west of HQ.2017-05-26 16:15
Once again the leaders have gone their separate ways. Maxime is on the hills to the south of HQ. The others, including Luc, have gone back the way they came and are 500m higher.2017-05-26 16:10
Another gaggle crossed the valley onto the other side above HQ, led by Martin Petz, and are now working as thermal markers for Maxime Pinot.2017-05-26 16:08
Next yesterday's winner Thomas Gury then Ulrich Prinz, Maxime Bellemin and Marc Wensauer2017-05-26 16:05
The top five have got the turn point, next were Pierre Remy, Clement Latour, Jean Marc Caron and Joachim Oberhauser2017-05-26 16:04
Clement is really close in to the relief - 53m above the ground, this must be bringing back so many X-Alps memories!2017-05-26 16:02
Maxime is higher than the others at 2020m, Clement is at 1201, Jean Marc Caron, 1900m2017-05-26 16:01
It's worth bearing in mind how the lead out points today will affect the scores. Their effect was clear in the 2016 Super Final.Task 7: Russel Ogden came in 19 seconds after leader Idris Birch, but still won by having an 8.8 lead out point advantage. Task 9: Yassen Savov, in the concentric circles task, took a very different down wind route to everyone else which gave him 109.5 lead out points putting him at least 6 places ahead of those he landed beside. T10: Maxime Pinot flew an absolute blinder, leading out right from the beginning, he so reduced the maximum scores of the other pilots, that everyone else was scored out of 900 rather than a 1000 points resulting in the top 10 places hardly changing between tasks 9 and 10.2017-05-26 15:59
Clement has dropped back a bit to climb2017-05-26 15:58
Maxime has got the turn point first2017-05-26 15:55
Maxime on the Gin Boomerang 11 is at 1553m and Clement Latour on the Ozone Enzo 3 is at 973m2017-05-26 15:53
Clement Latour and Maxime Pinot are racing each other on both sides of the ridge just after Allevard approaching the fourth turn point.2017-05-26 15:51
No sign of Soheil Barikani who led out so much yesterday at this stage in the race, he told me that his strategy today was to tell himself to stay with the gaggle, and above all, not to bomb out before the end of speed, very sensible!2017-05-26 15:47
A big thank you to our parner Flymaster for providing the trackers which are such a vital safety element in any paragliding competition nowadays and which have made todays task such great viewing.2017-05-26 15:45
From far and wide they are all now coming in to join the leaders on the ridge leading to turn point four.2017-05-26 15:42
Maxime Pinot is on a Boomerang 11, Luc Armant is right behind him on an Enzo 32017-05-26 15:40
There are nice climbs high up but it's stable low down, if you can stay high it's easy - but isn't that always the way!2017-05-26 15:39
Maxime told me before the comp 'my objective for here is to fly conservatively to get a place in the French team for the Worlds' - oh really Maxime, is that what you call 'conservatively'?2017-05-26 15:36
Maxime won the hotly contested 2016 Paragliding World Cup in France (in top 5 in all 3 tasks) as you can see today he's on great form at the moment, doing what he does best, sweeping up all the lead out points.2017-05-26 15:35
When Maxime isn't winning Paragliding World Cup tasks he works on the Paragliding World Cup committee and makes a very useful contribution as one of our young, cutting edge pilots.2017-05-26 15:33
Maxime Pinot what an amazing pilot. Task wins over last 3 years: 7 (after Stefan Wyss, this is the most anyone has won in the last 3 years). 3 of Maxime's task wins were in the 2016 Super Final.2017-05-26 15:31
Ulrich Prinz is leading the charge down the middle of the valley trying to catch Maxime Pinot2017-05-26 15:30
Ulric Jessop Paragliding World Cup Technical Delegate 'this is a masterpiece'.2017-05-26 15:29
No wonder 14,500 people are logging on to watch this amazing race everyday, it's just absolutely incredible, what a day!2017-05-26 15:27
European and World champion Honorin Hamard with 2012 European champion Yassen Savov are coming down the valley from the right. WOW!!!!!!2017-05-26 15:26
2014 Super Final champion Maxime Pinot in the middle2017-05-26 15:25
So we've got 2011 world champion and 2009 Super Final champion Charles Cazaux coming in from the left2017-05-26 15:22
Charles Cazaux, back from a bit of shopping at Aix les Bains, is now joining in again and about to come out into the main valley at Montmalian2017-05-26 15:20
Honorin and Yassen are working miracles in the middle of the valley, neck and neck with those who have stuck to the relief and are thermaling over launch: Maxime Pinot and overall leader, Luc Armant2017-05-26 15:17
We can just see Honorin coming out into the valley leaving Dent D'Arclusaz and the clouds behind him. The day does seem to have improved and the clouds have lifted a bit.2017-05-26 15:12
Honorin Hamard is now on the Dent d'Arclusaz2017-05-26 15:10
So far we've only had a few pilots land, once again a reflection of the pilot quality here. For those of you trying to learn a bit of French paragliding vocabulary 'il s'est vaché' does not mean that you've landed on a cow, it just means that you've landed out.2017-05-26 15:05
One of the big hopes with task setting here was to try and keep the testosterone filled pilots on their shiny new Enzo 3s and Boom 11s away from using max speed bar along ridges. I don't know whether they have managed that today but from a splitting them up point of view today - mission definitely accomplished!2017-05-26 14:59
Laurent Caetano and Charles Cazaux are further west still and look like they are heading for a day out at Aix-les-Bains2017-05-26 14:57
Maxime Pinot and his gaggle are on Margeriaz2017-05-26 14:55
Luc Armant and Maxime Bellemin are in the middle about to cross onto Mt Colombier2017-05-26 14:53
This is an amazing race with two parallel groups racing back through the Bauges. Honorin Hamard to the east, the rest to the west led by Maxime Pinot and Clement Latour2017-05-26 14:53
Honorin Hamard is on Charbonnet2017-05-26 14:46
Aaron Durogati is with the group who have just got the cylinder on Roc des Boeufs. One of the main things they will all be looking for today are birds climbing to mark the thermals. In 2016, he flew with cameras onboard to capture a golden eagle's point of view for Sir David Attenborough's TV series Planet Earth II. He flew above the Mont Blanc range to take film clips appearing to be from the bird's perspective for the wildlife documentary.2017-05-26 14:39
It looks as if those coming behind have all moved onto Roc des Boeufs, they will be great thermal markers for those who have led out on that route turned, and are now coming back.2017-05-26 14:37
Talking of the Roc des Boeufs, where are 'Les Rosbif' as the French love to call their British neighbours ?2017-05-26 14:34
It's difficult to know which way Yassen Savov is going to go, he's bagging lead out points and miracles by the looks of things today, I think he is crossing to join those on the Roc des Boeufs.2017-05-26 14:33
Marc Wensauer, Maxime Bellemin and Honorin Hamard's route along Roc des Boeufs, although slower to get to the turn point, may work as they just need to touch the cylinder then they have a straight ridge run back.2017-05-26 14:29
They have now got a long leg south back down to Allevard, Maxime Pinot on his Boomerang 11 is in the lead in orbit at 2131m and climbing2017-05-26 14:27
Overall leader Luc Armant is in the lead gaggle, this really has been his week.2017-05-26 14:26
A bigger group including Ulrich Prinz have taken the turn point on the back of Semnoz to the west2017-05-26 14:24
Maxime Pinot has taken the turn point on the south face of Semnoz2017-05-26 14:23
Maxime Bellemin and Marc Wensauer have gone via Roc des Boeufs2017-05-26 14:16
The leaders are now approaching Semnoz2017-05-26 14:14
Yesterday's task winner Thomas Gury has just taken the lead2017-05-26 14:13
Ulrich Prinz is currently lying third. According to the Ozone website his dislikes are as follows: Rain, Marmite and Red traffic lights. There are none of those on the course line so Uli should be loving today.2017-05-26 14:08
Maxime Pinot is out in front. He flew one of the most amazing performances the Paragliding World Cup has ever known in the last task of the 2016 Super Final. For virtually the whole task he was way out ahead of the crème de la crème of the paragliding world and crushed everyone else's lead out points. Will today be a the same again?2017-05-26 14:05
They are all now going along the Margeriaz ridge2017-05-26 14:03
The lead gaggle have got the second turn point Ronny Geijsen, Yassen Savov, Joachim Oberhauser, Nicola Donini and Maxime Bellemin2017-05-26 14:03
The top 25 have got the first turn point and are now heading into the Bauges to get the second turn point.2017-05-26 14:03
Today's difficult cloud base conditions probably won't affect overall leader Luc Armant s position2017-05-26 14:03
Luc can afford to take the day off, he has a 969 task to discard2017-05-26 14:03
The first forty pilots have taken the first turn point and are crossing Mont Colombier2017-05-26 13:42
There is some excellent footage on World Cup TV of one of the stars of this comp, Felix Rodriguez Fernandez currently 33rd, flying with cameras on board yesterday.2017-05-26 13:41
This is what happened to Alfredo Studer here in 2014 in task 4, he got ahead and the gaggle behind got flushed2017-05-26 13:35
This may split the gaggles up2017-05-26 13:34
Todays problem is going to be the cloud cover putting shade on the mountains creating cycles of lift and sink2017-05-26 13:33
The start is now open2017-05-26 13:03
Today looks quite difficult, I've just been watching a group of pilots skimming the trees behind launch but they seem to have got up now.2017-05-26 12:43
World and European champion Honorin Hamard who is very happy with his new Enzo 3 is off2017-05-26 12:41
World acro champion Felix Rodriguez Fernandez is just launching2017-05-26 12:41
Torsten Siegel the Gin genius is off2017-05-26 12:39
Richard Gallon is about to launch, one to watch in this comp as he has been for the last 25 years.2017-05-26 12:37
Ronny Geijsen is just taking off2017-05-26 12:34
Final adjustments are being made to about 50 pee tubes on launch and then the rest of the field will be off.2017-05-26 12:24
Day 6 of this amazing Coeur de Savoie Paragliding World Cup is about to begin as the first pilots take off.2017-05-26 12:22
For Yassen Savov 'Yesterday I had to rely on some miracles which I didn't like so I hope today will be better.'2017-05-26 12:20
So how do the pilots feel about today compared to yesterday?2017-05-26 12:17
The first pilots are getting ready to launch. The window opens at 13h30.2017-05-26 12:16
As they go in and out of the 2nd last turn point, south of Allevard, they'll need to choose which ridge to take.2017-05-26 12:14
The task is set - todays race is a 116.9 km Race to Goal.
The window will open at 12:15 Local Time and the Start is at 13:30
2017-05-26 12:13
The first choice today for the pilots flying into the Bauges is whether to head for Semnoz, Roc des Boeufs or Charbon2017-05-26 11:50
The briefing is taking place2017-05-26 11:47
The pilots are collecting their trackers 'no tracker, no tartiflette' is the slogan here in Savoie2017-05-26 11:45
On launch there are lots of beads of sweat and beeping varios as they all enter the task.2017-05-26 11:44
Talking to pilots part of the success of this comp has been the fantastic picnics, nice choice of sandwiches + fruit, a big thanks to Air Evenement2017-05-26 11:41
Alfredo Studer winner of 2 tasks in the Paragliding World Cup here in 2014, Marc Wensauer 2nd yesterday, XAlps veteran (2nd) Clement Latour are all wearing J&J tops, is this the secret of their success?2017-05-26 11:37
From a fashion point of view once again a lot of pilots are wearing Jack&Jones, the Paragliding World Cups favourite clothing company t-shirt2017-05-26 11:33
A 93.6 km task has been set going into the Bauges then out into the valley to stay away from any potential over developement later on.2017-05-26 11:32
For young local pilot Jules Croibier from Allevard, there is a worry of storms later but he hopes to fly even faster than yesterday so it shouldn't be a problem!2017-05-26 11:27
For French champion Jonathan Marin there is no cirrus, the cumulous already forming above all the high mountains indicates good thermals, good lift.2017-05-26 11:25
The weather looks different today from the previous days.2017-05-26 11:24
The free flyers are already skying out over launch2017-05-26 11:23
We are on Montlambert Indian launch again today.2017-05-26 08:23
Day 6 - and the weather is still good. The north wind is too strong for the planned trip to Les Saisies so the buses will leave HQ at 10:00 - probably to Montlambert (but we may change this)2017-05-25 20:15
The last pilots are back, the tracks have been processed and the results are now available online from the link above - we start again tomorrow, same timings 8am Breakfast, 9am Briefing and 10am Shuttle Departure - see you then...2017-05-25 19:34
The last couple of pilots have just been picked up and will be back here quite soon. Its been an intersting task with 64 on goal and 10 making end of speed section but not goal.
The results will be available soon.
2017-05-25 19:11
With half the field having landed out, for whom will the Great Sky God of Discards smile down on today? With ever changing leaders - who will be the biggest lead out point bagger today? The last few pilots are just reporting back so we should know very soon - keep watching this space.2017-05-25 19:04
Benedicte is another of the great givers in our sport. She helps organise comps for women (half men half women to be fair and give parity). In 2016 the competition was held in Laragne which was a great success with 6 tasks. This year it will be in Grand Bornand from the 30th of July to the 4th of August, in partnership with the FFVL. Time to get your entries in ladies and gentlemen.2017-05-25 19:03
Benedicte Saury landed just before the last turn point and has just reported back smiling after a great day.2017-05-25 18:57
For Marc Wensauer it was a good stable day but a really tough job to get into goal.2017-05-25 18:55
For Russell Ogden it was a well set task, with a diffcult final glide, but great fun, really happy with the Enzo 3.2017-05-25 18:51
For Alexander Coltman, winner of the Avon Club Arboreal trophy for landing in a tree six times in a year, 'when we got to Albertville and turned round into wind, I thought nobody would make it, so many did which just shows the pilot quality here'. At least Alex must have felt at home with all those trees around.2017-05-25 18:48
For Idris Birch, it was great until the last bit, which was mission impossible but we made it.2017-05-25 18:46
Unfortunately Yvonne Dathe, the last pilot in the air, has landed just before the end of speed.2017-05-25 18:45
For Felix Rodriguez Fernandez, 'the beginning was good, climbing everywhere, we followed the mountains to Albertville, then after Albertville it was strong, we were always fighting against the wind. I came into goal with 50m to spare so the last bit was very stressful. Well done to the task committee for an excellent task.'2017-05-25 18:43
Skipping round the beer jugs in the goal field there are lots of happy pilots in goal today. For Guy Anderson, whom we last saw fleeing from a Brazilian hospital wearing only a straw hat, 'it was 'boisterous, windy again, great fun and lots of opportunity to catch up, unfortunately I didn't manage to'.2017-05-25 18:42
Well done to Laurent Caetano and Federico Nevastro who have just made goal. Yvonne Dathe is the last one in the air but at 140m above the ground and with 4km to go.2017-05-25 18:37
Talking of the X-Alps Aaron Durogati, Maxime Pinot, Semih Sayir, Clement Latour and Andreas Malecki landed just before goal to sneak in a bit of X-Alps power training carrying their 30 kg packs back to HQ.2017-05-25 18:29
So far 62 pilots have made goal - half the field. Three pilots are still flying, tree lover Federico Nevastro, Annecy flying instructor Laurent Caetano and X-Alps competitor Yvonne Dathe2017-05-25 17:43
Felix Rodriguez Fernandez world acro champion has just been given the microphone in the landing field and is saying something very complicated in Spanish.2017-05-25 17:40
Half the field are in goal already, It's amazing how fast they can fly when there is a beer tent to land beside or on (but I'm not saying who).2017-05-25 17:38
Méryl Delferriere first lady today has just landed in goal. Her flying friend Yael Margelisch is just behind her and should make goal in second place in the ladies classification2017-05-25 17:35
Clement Latour who was the first pilot across end of speed unfortunately didn't make goal2017-05-25 17:31
The order across end of speed was Yassen Savov, Ernesto Hinestroza, Felix Rodriguez Fernandez, Stephan Kruger, Jonathan Marin, Marc Wensauer, Joachim Torn, Julien Brung, Charles Cazaux, Torsten Siegel and Jean Marc Caron2017-05-25 17:27
Pilots are coming into goal thick and fast.2017-05-25 17:24
Felix Rodriguez Fernandez has just landed in goal to loud whistles2017-05-25 17:23
Up until a pilot reaches the end of speed section, the figure shown, is the distance in kilometres from launch towards goal, i.e the distance they have flown so far along the direct route to goal. AFTER the end of speed section, their TIME around the course is shown with a bar through it. Once they reach goal, their time points are validated and the bar is removed2017-05-25 17:23
On our Fast Retrieve Leaderboard pilots who made the end of speed section but did NOT make goal, have a bar through their time indicating that they will get full distance points but will NOT get time points.2017-05-25 17:22
Clement Latour, Yassen Savov and Ernesto Hinestroza have taken end of speed2017-05-25 17:22
Yassen Savov is in 7th place but he should be able to make goal.2017-05-25 17:20
Jose Rebelo is in front but needs a climb2017-05-25 17:20
Ernesto Hinestroza just behind is higher and is on 8:1 so can probably glide straight in2017-05-25 17:19
Clement Latour is in the lead but he needs a climb or more buoyant air than he is currently getting2017-05-25 17:16
Honorin Hamard is following his favourite club's logo and going 'straight to goal' (via the end of speed).2017-05-25 17:15
Honorin Hamard is first round the last turn point, his Olympic Marseille logo is working for him today.2017-05-25 17:14
In the lead we have Honorin Hamard and Pierre Remy on Enzo3s and Aaron Durogati and Maxime Pinot on Boomerang 11s2017-05-25 17:08
The lead out points (or Glory Points as Yassen Savov calls them) today are going to be very interesting. The lead out point baggers over the last four tasks have been Luc Armant, Honorin Hamard, Ulrich Prinz, Maxime Pinot, Nicola Donini, Clement Latour, Pierre Remy, Yassen Savov and Julien Wirtz2017-05-25 17:04
As Jules Croibier told me this morning 'It's great the level of pilot in this competition, it's really exciting but really difficult to keep up, it's difficult to make your own choices, the gaggle goes much faster than you can on your own'.2017-05-25 17:02
This has been a day of different leaders, they push out, get low and then somebody else takes over. Jose is currently at 931m, those behind are are 1500m.2017-05-25 17:01
Jose Rebelo is a phenomenal XC pilot. He did some big distances in Quixadá, Brazil over the winter (480, 413, 397, 350, 327 km). When I last checked XContest, he was lying 6th.2017-05-25 16:57
Jose Rebelo is currently leading the procession to the tower opposite La Rochette2017-05-25 16:56
Looking at the overalls so far, Pierre Remy and Julien Wirtz are the best placed at the moment today.2017-05-25 16:52
Soheil Barikani is really pushing forward but he is a lot lower than the others - 990m compared to 1600m2017-05-25 16:51
They have made the transition and are on the hill above HQ2017-05-25 16:44
Soheil Barikani is storming ahead, he's got a 3 km lead on his new Boomerang 11.2017-05-25 16:43
Three pilots have come out of the mountains and are flying in the valley: Soheil Barikani, Marco Busetta and Yoshiaki Hirokawa2017-05-25 16:41
They are making really good progress towards the tower on the hill to the west of La Rochette - Tours de Montmayeur2017-05-25 16:36
Marco Busetta from Sicily is up with the leaders. He's a paragliding guide on Sicily flying Mt Etna. There's a very interesting article about flying volcanoes where Marco lives, in our partner Parapente Mag in Sept 2016.2017-05-25 16:32
Charles has dropped back from Thomas and Soheil, he's got a good climb and is now at 1674m compared to Soleil at 1356m and Thomas at 1453m2017-05-25 16:31
Méryl Delferriere is leading the ladies today.2017-05-25 16:29
It looks as if Olympic Marseille supporter Honorin Hamard is leading the second gaggle. We can see the Droit au But (Straight to goal) logo of his favourite football club on his wing.2017-05-25 16:27
They are all following along the chain of the Grand Arc.2017-05-25 16:25
The three leaders have got a 2km lead. They are all about the same height of 1300m.2017-05-25 16:24
Philippe Broers our cameraman is flying with them getting the action. He was flying with the three leaders and has now turned to get the next gaggle of 60 pilots flying past.2017-05-25 16:23
Soheil Barikani is with Thomas and Charles. He has done some amazing flying in Iran. He is used to flying high (he has been up to 6360m without oxygen) and in strong wind and strong thermals in his home country of Iran. He's obviously a very versatile pilot!2017-05-25 16:19
Keen sailor Thomas Gury is with Charles2017-05-25 16:17
Charles Cazaux is in the lead, he's been in the top 10 twice so far in this competition, he was world champion in 2011 and won the Super Final in 20092017-05-25 16:12
The leaders have made the crossing and are back on the Grand Arc again2017-05-25 16:10
You can see some of the action from the last few days on world cup TV, our amazing flying cameraman Philippe Broers was once again in the air filming2017-05-25 16:08
It looks as if we'll see some new faces in the top ten today. Those who have been consistently in the top 10 so far have been: Luc Armant, Charles Cazaux, Aaron Durogati, Thomas Gury, Alexandre Jofresa, Russell Ogden, Maxime Pinot, Ulrich Prinz, Pierre Remy, Yassen Savov, Torsten Siegel and Julien Wirtz2017-05-25 16:03
They are all climbing at the moment to make the valley crossing with no one really leading so far. Yesterdays lead out points winner Yassen Savov the 'Great Sky God of Ironing' is with them.2017-05-25 16:00
When the second pilot in each team comes into goal that's their position in the team rankings. The score depends on at least half the team doing well - both the first AND the second pilot in each team need to be fast.2017-05-25 16:00
There is a beautiful article about 'Tonton Xav', our much missed Xavier Murillo, in a recent issue (July 2016) of our partner Parapente Mag.2017-05-25 15:59
Each Paragliding World Cup partner can have a team. Each team can have up to three pilots and one female pilot per team. Points are given based on the position of the 2nd person in the team, i.e only the second person in each team scores. This simple, but incredibly effective idea, was the brain child of Xavier Morillo. No need to do lots of complicated mathematics adding up all the team pilot's scores.2017-05-25 15:58
The team competition has also been interesting to watch with Ozone and Gin dominating.2017-05-25 15:57
The first thirty have just got the third turn point2017-05-25 15:51
They are all skimming the eidelweiss on the slopes around the third turn point at the moment.2017-05-25 15:50
Richard Gallon began flying in 1985 in Hilaire du Touvet. Overall winner of the Paragliding World Cup in 1993!!!!! Founder of Paragliding World Cup partner AirG in 2009 and the SAT Team. He's an amazing pilot who needs no introduction. Richard is a legend in tenacity as we saw when he was battling it out for first place in the St Andre 2016 Paragliding World Cup and his Stabilo line broke, but determined as ever, he still managed to make it into goal in 4th place.2017-05-25 15:46
The leaders Thomas Gury Richard Gallon are neck and neck to get the 3rd turn point2017-05-25 15:43
We have had such great weather here and it's set to continue contrary to Technical Delegate Ulric Jessop's holy cheese global weather theory: The bigger the cheese, the more it rains. Ulric himself lives in the south of France where the cheese is 2 cm in diameter and has the appellation 'crottin' which means 'droppings'. Here in Coeur de Savoie you could fit several 'crottin' into the holes in each of the cheeses! Thankfully Ulric's holy cheese global weather theory has been wrong all week.2017-05-25 15:38
Today's task has well and truly seperated everyone out. Well done to the task setters Laurie Genovese and Andreas Malecki2017-05-25 15:33
It's been lovely to see Aaron Durogati's 8 month old son Arno here cheering Dad on. Ozone obviously set a trend for giving names. Following the Ozone (Enzo, Zeno) trend of always using the same 4 letters, Aaron called his son Arno. Let's hope a future baby number 2 doesn't get called Arno Light (Z-Alps).2017-05-25 15:30
This Paragliding World Cup is a great foretaste of this summers X-Alps race, with five of the competitors here lying overall: Aaron Durogati (1st X-Alps pilot), Stanislav Mayer, Michal Gierlach, Benoit Outters and David Liano Gonzalez2017-05-25 15:22
Stanislav Mayer is one of todays leaders. He's an avid adventure athlete. He has done very well over the last few years in endurance competitions like the X-Pyr (2nd in 2016) and the X-Alps (12th in 2015). Everyone is really looking forward to watching Stanislav in this summers X-Alps.2017-05-25 15:16
Yoshiaki Hirokawa is out in front. When I asked him over breakfast what he liked about flying in the alps he replied 'the croissants and the cheese'.2017-05-25 15:15
The leaders have just passed Grand Arc2017-05-25 15:14
At launch Laurent told me that he finds the level of pilot here exceptional. He has learnt that the gaggle is always right, best to stay in the gaggle, however he is obviously doing a bit of trail blazing today.2017-05-25 15:11
Laurent Caetano will be very at home, he has flown off a lot of the 4000m mountains here: Mt Blanc, Dome d'Ecrins, Dome de Miage, Grand Capucin, Aiguille Verte.2017-05-25 15:09
Maxime Pinot, Felix Rodriguez Fernandez, Laurie Genovese and Laurent Caetano have gone further into the mountains.2017-05-25 15:07
Everyone is heading for the hills today2017-05-25 15:06
There is a big gaggle climbing on the hill to the east of HQ. Thomas Gury, Semih Sayir, Julien Brung and Louis Gerin-jean have broken away and gone for the transition ahead of the others2017-05-25 15:01
The very presidential Goran DIMISKOVSKI is one of the great givers in our sport, somebody who has often sacrificed his own flying career to work relentlessly behind the scenes to make a competition work. A big thank you to Goran from all the pilots who are about to fly over his head on their way to Albertville2017-05-25 15:00
Goran Dimiskovski, President of the Paragliding World Cup, has also just landed. Like a lot of Paragliding World Cup pilots, Goran is level headed in difficult situations, very organised, always looking and thinking ahead, qualities which have also make him a world class Mr President. There's a thought, would the world be a better place if only paraglider pilots could be presidents?2017-05-25 14:58
We've had a few pilots back already Ludovic Robert from Reunion Island, who broke his brake line. There is an interesting interview with 'Ludo' Ludovic ROBERT and an in depth article about Reunion Island and the Paragliding World Cup there last October (2016) in the January 2017 edition of our partner Parapente Mag.2017-05-25 14:54
If they are low the wind will be behind them. If they are high the north wind will be against them - a tricky choice.2017-05-25 14:53
Now they have a long leg north east up to Albertville2017-05-25 14:53
The top eighty have all just taken the second turn point. For what was supposed to be a slow day they are flying really fast.2017-05-25 14:47
One of the three and a half Welsh pilots in the comp, Ceri Brown, has just taken the lead. Ceri took a bit of time out from competing, 'Coming back after 16 years was an eye-opener with regard to the technological development of the sport. The performance of modern paragliders is fantastic in comparison to what we used to fly.'2017-05-25 14:44
There is a big gaggle out in the middle of the valley but from the goal field they don't look that high2017-05-25 14:41
The lead gaggle are just coming out into the main valley to make the first transition across the valley.2017-05-25 14:40
Alexander Coltman is one of the leaders today, according to his Skywings Pilot profile Alex started flying in the 1990s and gained some early notoriety in the Avon club for landing in trees!2017-05-25 14:35
It's also worth bearing in mind that whether the trackers work or not is frequently out of our partner Flymaster's hands and depends on the local GSM network.2017-05-25 14:34
Level calls are now also all done anonymously via the live trackers which gives the Meet Director and the Technical Delegate a very clear picture of what is going on, who is giving which level, how high they are and where they are on the course line. This gives a much more accurate picture about how all the pilots feel about the conditions than when it was done by radio.2017-05-25 14:34
In the event of a task being stopped or cancelled, a siren is used via the trackers and works much better than the old system of using radios.2017-05-25 14:33
So, if during a section of no coverage there is an accident, e.g Pilot A witnesses Pilot B throwing his reserve, and radios this information, a few minutes later when Pilot A comes back into coverage, we can see where they both were a few minutes earlier even though Pilot B's tracker is still not on line, and send out a rescue to the precise location of injured Pilot B. This exact scenario happened at the 2016 Super Final.2017-05-25 14:33
One of the many unique features of the trackers we use in the Paragliding World Cup is that they can be interrogated by Retrieve Maestro Chris Trow from a distance.2017-05-25 14:33
The detail in the tracklogs is incredible and lets the Meet Director and Technical Delegate identify and sanction aggressive flying or those not adhering to thermalling etiquette.2017-05-25 14:32
When pilots fly through an area with no coverage this doesn't mean that there is no tracklog for that part of the course, as soon as they get back into coverage we get the track and there is often a 'catch up effect' which makes it look as if they are flying really fast as their tracker moves to their new position.2017-05-25 14:32
For those who have felt that the live tracking is a waste of time because there are so many black holes with no coverage along the course, it's maybe worth remembering that their entertainment value is a bonus over and above the safety aspect they provide:2017-05-25 14:31
On the live leaderboard quite a few of the live trackers are off line and I know this is really annoying. From PG forum:'It is so disappointing that the live tracking is pretty much useless. All the worlds dedicated comp pilots would like to be able to watch this race but it is just a waste of time as it is. A real shame.'2017-05-25 14:29
Now they need to go south across the valley to the second turn point.2017-05-25 14:28
There seem to be three different routes Andreas Malecki and Hugo Laronze to the east, Andrii Chugaiev and Jean Marc Caron leading those in the middle and M. Umut Aktürk and Simon Pellissier leading those to the west.2017-05-25 14:23
First to the first turn point - Kaoru Ogisawa2017-05-25 14:20
They are now all flying along the same ridge to the first turn point just inside the Bauges.2017-05-25 14:18
The window is open and 100 pilots have all taken the start together2017-05-25 14:10
The pilots are all waiting together on a ridge to take the start in five minutes.2017-05-25 13:21
They are all off and getting nicely established above the ridge.2017-05-25 13:20
Louis Gerin-jean is off - time to get in front of the live tracking Francois and Valu - parents of 'The son's of Aerogliss'. Antoine Gerin-jean is off too.2017-05-25 13:14
Task setting committee maestro Andreas Malecki is off to sky test his own task.2017-05-25 13:12
Aaron Durogati twice Super Final champion is off closely followed by Semih Sayir2017-05-25 13:10
One of our top ladies Laurie Genovese is off on her way2017-05-25 13:09
Joanna Di Grigoli who as a teenager sold her violin to finance her paragliding career much to her Mum's horror, is launching2017-05-25 13:06
Tim Rochas from PraLoup in the south of France has just launched2017-05-25 13:05
One of the lead out point baggers in this comp Maxime Pinot is off2017-05-25 13:03
British champion Alexander Coltman has just launched2017-05-25 13:02
Veteran Gin pilot Kaoru Ogisawa has just launched hoping to do a bit of speeding on his Boomerang 11 today2017-05-25 13:02
The task is set - todays race is a 94.58 km Race to Goal.
The window will open at 12:45 Local Time and the Start is at 14:15
2017-05-25 13:01
Local paragliding instructor and mountaineer Laurent Caetano has just launched2017-05-25 12:59
Yoann Chavanne who led so much of yesterday's task has just launched.2017-05-25 12:58
Young up and coming French pilot Julien Brung has just taken off.2017-05-25 12:54
Baguettes aboard and their off!2017-05-25 12:52
Turn point 3 is at Albertville, then back down the valley to near La Rochette then into goal.2017-05-25 12:52
The start today is at 14.15 at Col de Frene, then just into the Bauges for the 1st turn point, then over the other side of the valley for turn pt 2.2017-05-25 12:45
The window is now open but there isn't much enthusiasm to take off so far.2017-05-25 12:43
Apparently in French 'A Cheval' when paragliding doesn't mean on horse back, instead it means flying directly above the ridge2017-05-25 12:42
We've just had a phone call to the Paragliding World Cup head quarters about that last post.2017-05-25 12:38
Spying from under the French team picnic table, it would appear that the French are going to do this task on horse back.2017-05-25 12:30
The task has just changed, a turn point has been moved and the task is now 94.5 km.2017-05-25 12:17
5 free flyers have just taken off and are climbing nicely.2017-05-25 12:16
I'm not sure whether Jacques Fournier and Julien Wirtz are swapping tops but Julien Wirtz is also now wearing a very smart navy Jack and Jones t-shirt too.2017-05-25 12:10
The French are once again sat round their cartographic tablecloth and dropping crumbs all over the alps.2017-05-25 12:01
The briefing is underway.2017-05-25 12:00
A 93.6km task has been set.2017-05-25 11:59
Marc Wensauer is not expecting today to be worse than yesterday. 'We've already had 4 days training in these conditions so I feel ready for today' he told me.2017-05-25 11:52
Big thanks to Air Evenement for the excellent paella last night, everyone had a wonderful time and the thermal stories got bigger with every prawn2017-05-25 11:47
Jacques Fournier is looking very smart in his Jack&Jones t-shirt today but too busy trying to work out who 'Jones' is to tell me about the weather.2017-05-25 11:44
Maxime Bellemin has just put down his book 'Death's End' and told me he's worried there will be more north wind than yesterday, in summary 'business as usual'.2017-05-25 11:41
Having fast forwarded Yassen to 2017 he thinks today might be slower than yesterday as it is more stable and a bit veiled.2017-05-25 11:39
Yassen Savov is getting into the right frame of mind for today's task with his head phones on, transported back to the 1950s reading 'A Spy in the House of Love'2017-05-25 11:35
For Maxime Pinot, one of the main lead out point baggers, the worry today is that it might be a bit stable, but the wind should be similar to yesteday.2017-05-25 11:33
The walk up to Montlambert was as always beautiful, stunning snowy alps in front, lush green fields with bright yellow buttercups and laburnum behind.2017-05-25 11:32
We're on the same launch as yesterday at Montlambert.2017-05-25 10:33
Apologies for the delay - links to the comp photos have now been added to the menu on the left (if you can't see them try a full refresh [Ctrl + F5])2017-05-25 09:25
Conditions favour the Montlambert launch again this morning so the transports will be heading there at 10:00
We should have details of our task at about 12:30
2017-05-24 21:09
Its been quite a challenging task but, still, we got 71 in the goal. Everybody is now back and the results have been produced.
They are, as usual, available from the link above.
Morning timings are still unchanged - shuttles will leave at 10:00 - see you then
2017-05-24 12:51
The task is set - todays race is a 109.65 km Race to Goal.
The window will open at 12:45 Local Time and the Start is at 14:00
2017-05-24 10:00
Today's weather seems much better than the forecast. The sky is quite clear with some high cirrus but the wind is quite light and the cirrus will probably burn off in a while. The pilots are on the way to takeoff and we will have task news in a couple of hours...2017-05-23 19:34
Its been an epic day (even for Ruth - apparently the meet director's car is a bit of an exciting ride). All of the pilots have enjoyed the task and an amazing 111 made goal.
Tomorrow is showing a north wind in the forecast so we will not be travelling up to La Saisie - we will use the Montlambert launch.
Consequently the timings will be the same as the other days 8am Breakfast 9am Briefing and 10am shuttle departure.
The results are now complete and can be found at the link on the homepage
2017-05-23 19:07
It appears that Joanna wasn't the last pilot in the air. A blue Gendarme helecopter has just loomed into view bringing last pilot Federico Nevastro home, having spent most of the afternoon extracting him from a tree. We would like to thank the gendarmes and the local mountain rescue for their 'tree to door service', without their help and support competitions of this level would not be possible.2017-05-23 18:56
Last pilot in the air Joanna Di Grigoli is doing a lap of honour over the beer tent before landing in goal.2017-05-23 18:50
Joanna's just got end of speed, not far to go. He's done some great XC flying recently.She hit the 2017 XC season running with a flight of 111 km from Méruz in France on the 29th of March. On the 25th of November 2016 she beat her own personal best by 240 km by flying 415 km in Quixada, Brazil, (on the same trip she also flew 364 km and 313 km).2017-05-23 18:48
Joanna Di Grigoli is nearly at the end of speed 800m above ground. Joanna's dream was always to fly. As a child when she was asked what she wanted to be when she grew up, she answered 'a bird'. Let's hope she can fly like a bird to goal.2017-05-23 18:37
Lars has just made goal to a round of applause from his friends in the goal field2017-05-23 18:34
Jang Wooyoung from South Korea has just made goal, over very different terrain to her home2017-05-23 18:31
The last three pilots (Jang Wooyoung, Lars Budack and Joanna Di Grigoli) are trying to make goal to join the 108 pilots already there.2017-05-23 18:31
Lars Budack took part in the X-Alps in 2013 and the X-Pyr in 2014 and 2016 - good practice for todays 96 km task.2017-05-23 18:31
Joanna Di Grigoli works as a paragliding travel writer and an English/Spanish translator for our partner XC magazine, which is also translated into Portuguese. There is an excellent flying culinary travelogue in the March 2017 edition of XC Magazine about Joanna's recent trip to Inner Mongolia.2017-05-23 18:17
For Jared Anderson, how was today, in a word 'stunning'. It was one of the top 3 flights he has ever done. Jared is a self-confessed paragliding addict, he even sold his dental clinic to chase his flying dreams. He was placed an impressive 3rd overall at his first Paragliding World Cup in Argentina in 2014.2017-05-23 18:13
For Torsten Siegel and Ulrich Prinz it was the right length of task which spread the field out, but it was possible to catch up, which made it a real race and very exciting.2017-05-23 18:11
For Maxime Pinot (currently lying second) it was great conditions with big strong thermals. I asked him whether he was conscious of marking other pilots ahead of him like Luc and Aaron, but he said it was still too early in the comp to do that.2017-05-23 18:10
Lots of happy sweaty pilots are coming into HQ with their trackers.2017-05-23 17:21
Todays task saw pilots having to chose between snowy summits or taking a lower line along wooded spurs.2017-05-23 17:20
Brendan Reid has just summed up the day. 'Stunning scenery, great route choices - in front or behind La Tourmettes. Great clouds. Very well set task'.2017-05-23 17:18
Lots of well earned beers are being consumed. It's amazing how far some people will fly for a free beer.2017-05-23 17:12
And still they come, an endless procession of gliders making their way in to the rather flattened long grass in the landing field at goal - 72 so far2017-05-23 17:10
Will the top overall wing be an Enzo 3 or a Boomerang 11 once the scores have been tallied tonight?2017-05-23 17:09
Current leader Luc Armant was 7th into goal today. Maxime Pinot currently lying 3rd was 2nd into goal and Luc's main challenger.2017-05-23 17:06
Another big group are coming in over the trees to join the 45 already in goal. The field is alive with the sound of beeping live trackers.2017-05-23 17:05
Clement Latour, Maxime Pinot and Torsten Siegel have just made 1 2 3 into goal2017-05-23 17:01
The sky is full of swooping gliders skimming the cow pats as they come into the goal field!2017-05-23 17:00
Méryl Delferriere has taken end of speed in 30th place2017-05-23 16:59
Méryl Delferriere is about to get end of speed, she has pulled away from Yael Margelisch2017-05-23 16:58
Next into goal Joachim Oberhauser, Julien Wirtz and Thomas Gury2017-05-23 16:57
The next ones in are Charles Cazaux, Alexandre Jofresa, Jose Rebelo and Luc Armant2017-05-23 16:54
Clement Latour takes the end of speed section followed by Maxime Pinot and Torsten Siegel2017-05-23 16:52
Maxime Pinot and Thomas Gury are hot on his heels2017-05-23 16:51
The first pilots led by Clement Latour are about to cross end of speed section2017-05-23 16:48
Now the pilots are taking the final turnpoint2017-05-23 16:47
The biggest lead point baggers so far this comp are Luc Armant, Honorin Hamard, Ulrich Prinz, Maxime Pinot, Nicola Donini. Keep up the speed well done to all five!2017-05-23 16:47
The pilots are now visible from the goal field Clement Latour is in the lead and about to take the final turnpoint2017-05-23 16:44
Lead out points are playing a big part in this comp having been increased by 50 pts to a maximum of 167 for this comp.2017-05-23 16:43
The lead is cycling between Clement Latour and Alexandre Jofresa Anything could happen!2017-05-23 16:42
Yesterday Seiko Fukuoka Naville was first lady and Gin was the first team. Overall Luc Armant 1st, Aaron Durogati 2nd, Maxime Pinot 3rd. Laurie Genovese 1st woman. Well done to all four.2017-05-23 16:41
Méryl Delferriere and Yael Margelisch have both passed turnpoint 3 and are battling it out neck and neck2017-05-23 16:39
Clement Latour is in the lead but there are 15 pilots within a kilometre of him The race is wide open2017-05-23 16:38
It'll be interesting to see how the scores change after today's task. Yesterday Maxime Pinot was 1st and Aaron Durogati 3rd both on Boom 11s and Honorin Hamard on an Enzo 3 was 2nd.2017-05-23 16:38
The pilots are all very close Now 30 pilots are past turnpoint 3 and are on final glide2017-05-23 16:33
The first group led by Julien Wirtz have passed the third turnpoint OK2017-05-23 16:28
'The Paragliding World Cup is the university of paragliding, where you get to learn with the best, there is a real willingness to pass on advice and information' Ceri Brown2017-05-23 16:23
Talking of the amazing level of pilot here Ceri Brown summed it up really well at launch2017-05-23 16:18
Kaoru Ogisawa was one of the few pilots who bet the formidable team Jessop in the 2007 X-alps. Todays task is obviously putting the best on the deck.2017-05-23 16:15
So what went wrong Ogi? 'I wasn't patient enough in the little thermals and wanted a big one which didn't happen, an easy mistake to make.'2017-05-23 16:13
We've just collected Kaoru Ogisawa from a very pretty alpine meadow. Here's what he said about the task.2017-05-23 16:12
The start was very crowded then it was all fine until La Tourmette, which he went behind, that worked, the thermals were good, not too windy.2017-05-23 15:53
As Marco Busetta told me this morning converge zones are important, they may get a bit of convergence when they come out of the mountains into the main valley2017-05-23 15:48
They will also have had great views into the jagged snowy peaks on the east side of the Bauges where they have flown for the last 2 days2017-05-23 15:46
What an amazing view the pilots will have had of the monolithic block with its bare rock which is the famous La Tournette2017-05-23 15:46
'It's been great to send the pilots into a totally different range of mountains, that's the richness of Paragliding World Cup tasks' Didier Mathurin told me this morning.2017-05-23 15:46
The leaders are at 2500m and taking the Les Saisies turn point2017-05-23 15:27
They'll be looking at the wind direction and the sun. The spines and ridges are where the hot air is triggered, that's where they'll find the thermals2017-05-23 15:25
The pilots will be using a real mix of topography and the sky today2017-05-23 15:21
Sorry that should have been Col des Saisies2017-05-23 15:21
The leaders look to already be passing Col des Daisies2017-05-23 15:08
The conditions are still good and no problems with the wind so far2017-05-23 15:06
They have just got to the Aravis with a nice cloud street, and already well spread out2017-05-23 15:02
Meanwhile in the meet directors car we are thermaling a roundabout, 3 turns and we've got the right exit2017-05-23 15:00
After the first turn point they need to decide whether to go in front or behind Tournette Jacques Fournier told me before they took off2017-05-23 14:57
After the start the gaggle will be heading to a cylinder round Parmelan then turning south east.2017-05-23 14:53
Todays commentary is being brought to you live from the meet director's car which is a way more scary way of doing the task than flying it2017-05-23 14:32
The start was so dramatic, 12 little arcs each with a tiny dot, moving like a swarm out above the lake turning as one and off they went - fast!2017-05-23 14:30
On your speed bars, get set, go. The start is open.2017-05-23 14:27
There are 125 tiny arc shaped dots high up in the sky under a puffy cloud ready to take the start.2017-05-23 14:03
Like you don't have a 96km Paragliding World Cup task to do2017-05-23 14:02
Top acro pilot Jeremie Bailly is giving the spectators on launch a demonstration of what you can do with a wing when you don't have to go anywhere.2017-05-23 13:56
The pilots are all off and most are at over 2000 m on the Forclaz side of the lake waiting for the start to open at 14.302017-05-23 13:46
Luc Armant currently leading the comp 'this is a good task, with great weather and fantastic wings'. Thanks for your part in designing those fab wings Luc2017-05-23 13:38
There really is no chance of having a quiet picnic in the woods here today.2017-05-23 13:38
Jean Marc Caron has just flown over my picnic table too making loud woops of joy - probably because he's remembered his tracker today.2017-05-23 13:35
Torsten Siegel on his shiny new Boomerang 11 has just flown over my picnic table too.2017-05-23 13:33
A wing with our partner Jack&Jones logo, the Paragliding World Cups favourite clothing company, has just flown over my head to join the others in the first theral2017-05-23 13:32
Emma Casanova is here, 'it's amazing to see the improvent in performance in the last 2 years, you keep thinking they can't get better, then they do'.2017-05-23 13:31
It's great to see so many spectators on launch today, some of them past Paragliding World Cup pilots.2017-05-23 13:30
The task has been updated - todays race is now a 96.15 km Race to Goal.
The window will open at 13:00 Local Time and the Start is at 14:30
2017-05-23 13:29
Take off is a bit tricky but those who are off are getting nice climbs on the cliffs just north of launch2017-05-23 13:21
South African pilot Stephan Kruger has just launched2017-05-23 13:19
Maxime Pinot currently lying 3rd overall has just taken off2017-05-23 13:16
The first pilots are now taking off.2017-05-23 13:07
The free flyers who have just taken off are not maintaining yet so a relatively late start has been set of 14.302017-05-23 13:05
The task will take the pilots behind the Forclaz launch onto the Tournette and the Aravis.2017-05-23 13:04
Today's start will be the castle in the middle of Lake Annecy at Duingt. The start time has yet to be decided.2017-05-23 12:37
A 96 km task has been set and the briefing is taking place.2017-05-23 12:30
The club/school Les Volatiles (Thierry and Patrick Berod and Patrice Bonnefond) then took on the site, and the rest, as they say is paragliding history.2017-05-23 12:28
Mr Henri Bouvier from the CAF in Annecy supervised the clearing and organisation of this world renowned site.2017-05-23 12:26
The new site was open to all. The Region and the Department invested lots of money in developing it.2017-05-23 12:24
A provisional task has been set - todays race will be a 96.15 km Race to Goal.
The window times and start time are not yet declared - an update will be published when they are set
2017-05-23 12:23
Flying started here in 1991, taking off at the farm at the actual Col de la Forclaz. Then with the help of the Myor, Mr. Robert Tugen, the take-off was moved to being higher up2017-05-23 12:18
From launch there is a great view of the rocky cliffs of Roc des Boeufs, Semnoz, Lac D'Annecy and the town of Annecy to the north.2017-05-23 12:14
Maxime Bellemin has just described the weather, slight northerly wind, the sky is a bit covered but if that clears it'll be epic, if not, it'll be really difficult2017-05-23 12:12
Day 3 and we are at the famous Col de la Forclaz launch, near Annecy. The take-off is huge and every inch of it is covered in paragliders this morning.2017-05-23 10:54
We are going to try a new idea for the commentary today - Ruth Jessop will be travelling in the meet director's car as he drives along the course. This presents a few technical problems but we will do what we can to make it work - keep watching to see what happens...2017-05-23 09:27
Day 3 is upon us and the whole competition is moving to Annecy today. Shuttles will leave Chamousset at 10:00 to go to Col De La Forclaz at the south east end of lake Annecy. We expect the goal to be here in Chamousset so it should be an interesting task. More details will be here when the task is finally set...2017-05-22 19:28
The final pilots are now back at HQ - the results have been processed and are now available from the link on the website. Timings for tomorrow are the same - Breakfast 8am Briefing 9am and shuttles leaving at 10am - tomorrow we will go to Annecy for the takeoff.2017-05-22 18:18
The last pilot in the air Larry Pino has just made goal after 5 hours and 19 minutes in the air. Well done to all the pilots today, what a great demonstration of just how well the new wings can cope with such difficult turbulent conditions.2017-05-22 17:54
Larry Pino is at 647m above the ground with 4.4 km to go to end of speed and a 10:1 glide to goal down wind, he should make it.2017-05-22 17:51
Unfortunately David Liano Gonzalez has landed but Larry Pino has made it out into the main valley.2017-05-22 17:40
If climbing Everest six times wasn't enough, David has also climbed both versions of the Seven Summits. In April 2017 he took part in the Marathon des Sables once again in aid of the 'The Live Love Laugh Foundation'. 'It was great, I only lost one toe nail', he told me. All good practice for this summer's X-Alps which he is also taking part in.2017-05-22 17:38
David Liano Gonzalez is further back still and possibly going to get the Guinness World Record for the longest Paragliding World Cup flight. He already holds the Guinness World Record for being the first mountaineer to climb Mount Everest twice in the same season, from both the Nepal and Tibet sides, an incredible climb which he has done six times in total! The last ascent in 2016 was to support 'The Live Love Laugh Foundation' which helps people going through depression and mental health. A big part of David's motivation is to eradicate the stigma and taboos attached to mental illness and create awareness about it. Well done, what a great achievement.2017-05-22 17:12
Larry Pino is still flying, he's high in the middle of the Bauges with quite a long way to go still but should make it.2017-05-22 17:08
Well done to Masoud Mehrakizadeh who has just arrived in goal. He had some good top 15 scores last year: 12th in the 2016 Nepali Pre World Cup in Pokhara and 14th in the 2016 Turkish Pre World Cup in Hasan Dagi, Aksaray2017-05-22 17:02
Four pilots are still flying. Mari-anne Aanes has just made goal.2017-05-22 16:43
99 pilots have made goal so far and there are still pilots in the air - incredible! 1 year old Hanami has come in wearing Dad, Yoshiaki Hirokawa's, live tracker round her neck as Dad was too tired to carry it!2017-05-22 16:10
The leading ladies have just arrived in goal. Seiko Fukuoka Naville, Laurie Genovese and Méryl Delferriere.2017-05-22 16:04
Xevi Bonet Dalmau Honorin Hamard Aaron Durogati Julien Wirtz Russell Ogden are in the lead and about to take end of speed2017-05-22 16:04
The leaders are coming into goal: Aaron Durogati and Xevi Bonet Dalmau2017-05-22 16:04
The top 8 are just landing in goal2017-05-22 16:03
Honorin Hamard, Russell Ogden, Maxime Pinot, Julien Wirtz, Marc Wensauer, Luc Armant have just landed in goal to big applause2017-05-22 16:03
There is a long line of gliders flying aross the goal field, 40 gliders coming in thick and fast what an amazing sight.2017-05-22 16:03
After such a difficult start it's fantastic to see 60 pilots already in goal after 73 km2017-05-22 16:03
The sky is absolutely full of gliders, it's so colourful, like a giant mobile of wings2017-05-22 16:03
Ernesto Hinestroza, Charles Cazaux, Ulrich Prinz, Joachim Oberhauser, Stephan Kruger are about to land in goal2017-05-22 15:45
Luc Armant yesterday's winner is in the lead group2017-05-22 15:45
Alfredo Studer, Xevi Bonet Dalmau, Honorin Hamard, Ernesto Hinestroza, Julien Wirtz, Ulrich Prinz and Luc Armant are all in the lead group2017-05-22 15:45
The leaders have just come out into the valley and are tiny coloured dots very high in the sky2017-05-22 15:44
Alfredo Studer is in the lead he's low but should have enough height to get goal2017-05-22 15:25
This is going to be a very close finish, there are about 25 pilots from all over the world (Venezuela to France) in the lead gaggle!2017-05-22 15:23
They are all just getting a little bit more height before going for a final glide to the last turn point and end of speed. The leaders are high - 1700m +2017-05-22 15:21
The valley wind is south west blowing up the valley so they will have an into wind leg to turn point 4 then they'll have a fast down wind leg to end of speed.2017-05-22 15:19
The lead gaggle have just got back onto the Dent D'Arclusaz and should soon be within sight of the HQ and goal field, however they have still to do turn point 4.2017-05-22 15:14
Alfredo Studer is with the lead gaggle. He has won 2 tasks over the last 3 years. Both of which were here in Coeur de Savoie in 2014. He was second over all. In task 4 in 2014, Alfredo gave a great demonstration of how to decisively win a task. He spotted the best place to get a climb right at the beginning, correctly judged exactly when to go for the valley crossing and flew virtually the whole task with a 10 minute lead over the others.2017-05-22 15:10
Laurie was 2nd in the 2016 St Andre Paragliding World Cup and 2nd in the 2014 Coeur de Savoie Paragliding World Cup. She was 2nd OVERALL in Task 6 in the Val Louron 2013 Paragliding World Cup and 7th OVERALL in the comp, big mountains are definitely her type of flying.2017-05-22 15:06
Laurie Genovese is right up at the front, obviously happy with the task setting today.2017-05-22 15:03
Honorin and Charles Cazaux are leading the ridge run south. Charles is one of the pilots that Honorin Hamard admires the most, here's what he had to said about him recently: 'Charles Cazaux has nerves of steel, in little thermals on the flats, he's a killer, he can spend hours in the air and still has the strength to battle away in the last little thermal of the day.'2017-05-22 14:56
Conversely I struggled to find the pilot profiles of some of the British pilots here, Russel Ogden and Ceri Brown's were written before the digital era. Fortunately, to raise the average age of the French pilots in the comp we have Jacques Fournier representing the French Papyrus era of pilot profiles. Seriously though, it's absolutely brilliant to see such a spread of ages, all competing as equals, unlike in virtually any other world class competition.2017-05-22 14:55
There are a lot of very young up and coming French pilots in this comp - a lot have been in the top ten in the French under 21s comp in the last five years. Simon Pellissier, Bastien De Luca, Téo BOUVARD, Hugo Laronze and Meryl Delferrière are all new out of Pôle Espoir de Font Romeu in the Pyrenees.2017-05-22 14:52
It's very difficult to see who is in the lead at the moment, but it looks like young French pilot Yoann Chavanne is in front. He's no stranger to winning tasks in comps with a very high level of pilot. He won a task in the Paragliding World Cup in Montalegre in 2015 and the 1st task in the 2015 Paragliding World Cup in Switzerland.2017-05-22 14:48
Once again they are going to be flying cross wind with fairly weak thermals2017-05-22 14:41
They are now all turning round to race back south to the fourth turn point further down the valley from HQ.2017-05-22 14:40
The pilot quality and local knowledge in this comp is incredible. 11 out of the top 15 from the previous 2014 Coeur de Savoie Paragliding World Cup are here: Félix Rodriguez, Alfredo Studer, Clement Latour, Julien Wirtz, Ulrich Prinz, Torsten Siegel, Alexander Schalber, Jacques Fournier, Aaron Durogati, Luc Armant and Jean-Marc Caron2017-05-22 14:36
It looks as if 35 pilots are going to get the turn point on Semnoz at once2017-05-22 14:35
Who's going to get turn point 3 first?2017-05-22 14:33
Honorin and the rest of the gaggle have pretty much caught up with Yassen and Pierre, but those further back have more height.2017-05-22 14:32
There's a line of pilots stretched out behind Yassen and Pierre with the pilots at the back just getting to the second turn point.2017-05-22 14:30
Yesterday's runner up Pierre Remy is right on Yassen's trailing edge, they've both got the same height 1650m.2017-05-22 14:29
Yassen told me yesterday that he much prefers the terrain here to that in the Super Final. 'It's more logical here, more predictable and makes more sense.' It's certainly working for him here today.2017-05-22 14:27
Yassen is a real lead out points bagger, a pilot who is consistently right up at the front doing his own thing, hoovering up all the points.2017-05-22 14:26
Yassen is 4km ahead, this is a repeat of task 2 in the St Andre Paragliding World Cup in 2016 when Yassen did a Yassen and stormed ahead.2017-05-22 14:21
Durali Karaca is crossing the valley to get the turn point as near to the third turn point as possible and it looks as if he has overtaken the leaders.2017-05-22 14:18
The second gaggle seem to have caught up with Yassen - who has perhaps stopped to do some ironing.2017-05-22 14:14
Yassen is still in the lead after the second turn point2017-05-22 14:11
Honorin Hamard's gaggle have got the second turn point. Yassen has made a break for it and is going to get the turn point nearer to the third turn point than Honorin.2017-05-22 14:06
Honorin Hamard has broken away from the second gaggle and is a bit higher than Yassen2017-05-22 14:04
Honorin Hamard and a group just behind Yassen have followed the Margeriaz ridge but are taking longer2017-05-22 14:01
Nicola Donini is with Yassen as are Durali Karaca and Alexandre Jofresa2017-05-22 13:59
The wind today is southerly so they are flying slightly cross wind2017-05-22 13:58
Yassen Savov is in front - he's obviously not taken his ironing with him today.2017-05-22 13:53
8 out of the top 10 from the 2016 St Andre Paragliding World Cup, which had one of the highest levels of pilot we've ever seen, are here: Maxime Pinot (1st), FELIX RODRIGUEZ FERNANDEZ (2nd), Luc ARMANT (3rd), Honorin HAMARD (4th), Torsten SIEGEL (5th), Pierre REMY (6th), Michal Gierlach (8th), Yassen SAVOV (9th). If they are making it look difficult today, then that really means something.2017-05-22 13:43
Famous last words, it looks as if only about 20 pilots got the start gate on time.2017-05-22 13:22
From the ground it looks as if most of the pilots are going to make the start on time today - just!2017-05-22 13:11
Quite a big gaggle is forming above launch with more and more pilots joining them2017-05-22 13:08
A lot of pilots are low to the south of launch but they are getting up and the condtions are starting to improve.2017-05-22 12:50
The Meet Director and Technical Delegate have gone further round the course to assess the weather conditions.2017-05-22 12:49
Virtually all the pilots are off but there are concerns that the thermals are capped too low to make the task viable.2017-05-22 12:44
X-Alps veteran Yvonne Dathe has just taken off, she's one of the few women to have ever taken part in the gruesome race - big respect.2017-05-22 12:38
Those in the air have managed to get established on the Crete Marocaz2017-05-22 12:36
The thermic breeze hasn't got fully established so the meteo wind is still coming through making launching difficult.2017-05-22 12:32
Andreas Malecki and Marc Wensauer are just launching2017-05-22 12:30
Then north towards Lake Annecy then back south towards HQ for a last turn point and goal.2017-05-22 12:28
Then they will go onto the Dent d'Arclusaz for the first turn point then NW across the Massif des Bauges for the 2nd turnpt.2017-05-22 12:26
The pilots are once again going south of launch to get a climb before heading NW to get the start at 13.30 just east of launch.2017-05-22 12:23
Top lady from yesterday Méryl Delferriere is just taking off2017-05-22 12:16
The first pilots are just taking off, there is little bit of turbulence in front of launch which is making it difficult2017-05-22 12:10
The task is set - todays race is a 73.45 km Race to Goal.
The window will open at 12:15 Local Time and the Start is at 13:30
2017-05-22 11:55
On the Paragliding World Cup Facebook page there is once again some excellent footage of yesterday's task to give you an idea of the stunning Alpine scenery here.2017-05-22 11:52
We are delighted once again to have Philippe Roea as meet director. He presided over the very successful 2014 Coeur de Savoie Paragliding World Cup.2017-05-22 11:50
Ulric Jessop and Philippe Roea are taking the briefing.2017-05-22 11:47
All is silent on launch except for the beep of varios, everyone is feverishly entering todays task into their instruments.2017-05-22 11:44
Timing wise pilots will probably be taking off at about 12.15 with the start opening at 13.30 to give everyone more time to get there today.2017-05-22 11:39
It was great to see the new Ozone and Gin wings flying yesterday, the top 3 pilots Luc Armant, Pierre Remy, and Ulrich Prinz were all on Enzo 3s and the wining team was Gin.2017-05-22 11:33
Hopefully today's task will give pilots more time to get to the start2017-05-22 11:31
Laurie Genovese who is on the Paragliding World Cup task setting committee thinks there will be quite a lot of wind and cirrus high up so similar to yesterday.2017-05-22 11:28
Richard Gallon 'today is a day to be wide awake, the cycles will be widely spaced and it will be easy to go down'.2017-05-22 11:27
Ronny Geijsen and Kaoru Ogisawa are concerned it might be a bit too stable2017-05-22 11:25
Day 2 of the Coeur de Savoie Paragliding World Cup. The pilots are once again at the Montlambert launch and looking anxiously at the sky today.2017-05-22 10:55
The transports have all left HQ - we expect task news at about 12:002017-05-22 09:57
Day 2 is here - the sky is filled with cirrus clouds but we think they will burn off soon. The pilots will go to the Montlambert launch and we expect to set a task with an East/West axis - more details will be along at about 12:002017-05-21 20:51
Thats it - all done - the results are now available to view at THIS LINK - the link is also on the front page of the website but may not work correctly until tomorrow depending on your browser)
Timings for tomorrow are the same as for today - Breakfast 0800 - Briefing 0900 and the shuttles will leave HQ at 1000
We are aware that there is a problem with the overalls at the moment - the task scores are correct - this will be fixed in the morning.
2017-05-21 19:50
Its been a great task with some very tricky flying. The last pilot landed about 10 mins ago. In the end we had a total of 77 making the goal - the results are now being processed and will be available very soon.2017-05-21 19:45
Pawel Chrzaszcz has just made it into goal, 6.25 hours after the start gate opened!2017-05-21 19:41
Last pilot in the air, Pawel Chrzaszcz is just coming into view above the trees at goal.2017-05-21 19:36
Marius Teie has just landed2017-05-21 19:22
The last two pilots in the air, Marius Teie and Pawel Chrzaszcz, are making a brave attempt to get to goal.2017-05-21 18:11
Well done to both Gin and Ozone for all the R&D which has gone into the fantastic new wings the pilots were flying today2017-05-21 18:10
The top Gin test pilots Torsten Siegel and Idris Birch and the top Ozone test pilots Luc Armant and Russell Ogden all agree 'it was great to race today on such similar wings'2017-05-21 18:07
The sky above goal is still full of pilots coming in - today has been a great day for a lot of pilots2017-05-21 17:51
Laurie Genovese has just landed in goal too2017-05-21 17:50
First lady Méryl Delferriere is just coming in over the heads of the cheering crowds2017-05-21 17:49
I don't think we've ever had so many spectators at a Paragliding World Cup goal field, great atmosphere, with lound cheers every time a pilot comes in.2017-05-21 17:47
Méryl Delferriere has just taken end of speed2017-05-21 17:46
Méryl Delferriere and Laurie Genovese are battling it out in a very lady like fashion to be first woman in goal2017-05-21 17:45
Just coming into goal Joachim Oberhauser, Russell Ogden and Christian Biasi2017-05-21 17:44
Torsten Siegel and Idris Birch have just arrived in goal2017-05-21 17:43
Nicola Donini has just landed in goald2017-05-21 17:42
Super Final champion Aaron Durogati and Richard Gallon and Julien Wirtz have just landed in goal2017-05-21 17:41
Pierre Remy and Ulrich Prinz are just coming into goal2017-05-21 17:38
Luc Armant is just coming into goal to massive cheers from the awaiting crowds, what an atmosphere2017-05-21 17:36
Pierre Remy has got end of speed2017-05-21 17:36
Luc Armant is in the lead he has taken end of speed2017-05-21 17:35
Ulrich Prinz, Luc Armant, Pierre Remy, Aaron Durogati and Richard Gallon have taken the last turn point2017-05-21 17:34
In the lead Luc Armant who has taken the last turn point2017-05-21 17:32
They are on final glide2017-05-21 17:28
Leading lady Méryl Delferriere is still right up at the front - she was 1st lady in the Championnat de France Jeunes 2016 (under 21)2017-05-21 17:26
They aren't racing at the moment, they are just trying to get enough height to stay in the comp, this is going to be difficult, a lot of the leaders are less than a 100 m off the ground, they are pushing into wind, each little climb they stop for is taking them backwards.2017-05-21 17:22
The leaders are scraping along the tree covered hillside to the east of HQ, we may yet see the 'hero to zero' phenomenon that we saw so often in the Super Final2017-05-21 17:16
Luc Armant, Julien Wirtz and Aaron Durogati are just behind but much higher than Marco2017-05-21 17:13
Marco Busetta has taken the lead but he is very low2017-05-21 17:11
'Task setting will really need to try and seperate out the pilots as much as possible as the new wings are really similar', quote from Semih Sayir. Mission accomplished today!2017-05-21 17:06
Without Kirsty Cameron, who so dominated the 2014 Coeur de Savoie Paragliding World Cup and won the 2016 St Andre Paragliding World Cup, there's a vacancy on the women's podium. I am sure Kirsty and 2 month old baby Noah will be keenly watching the comp and cheering on young up and coming French pilot Méryl Delferriere who is with the leaders.2017-05-21 16:58
The pilots tend to wait until the final glide to go at max speed as that is the point in the race where your position really counts. This is the point when we'll really see how the new gliders in the comp compare.2017-05-21 16:57
Luc is the only one to have made the 3rd turn point but he is very low2017-05-21 16:55
A real reflection of the pilot quality in this Coeur de Savoie Paragliding World Cup is that 28 of the pilots competing here have done what so many competition pilots dream of doing - winning a Paragliding World Cup task. Some of them have done it many, many times even just within the last three years -Maxime Pinot has won at least 7 tasks, Torsten Siegel 6, Yassen Savov 5. There are a lot of very current and very competitive pilots here me thinks and this task has done a great job of seperating them all out.2017-05-21 16:50
They've made the transition and are climbing on the other side of the valley.2017-05-21 16:47
Felix Rodriguez Fernandez is also right up with the leaders. There is a great article (with very scary photo) about Felix in the March 2017 edition of our partner Parapente Mag.2017-05-21 16:45
Once they make the valley crossing they'll probably have enough height to get turn point three and four and end of speed.2017-05-21 16:42
The leaders are climbing on the hill to the east of HQ. They need to get as much height as possible to make the transition just before turn point 3.2017-05-21 16:39
French champion Jonathan Marin, is also up with the leaders.2017-05-21 16:39
The leaders have just come into view of the goal field, half way to the 3rd turn point.2017-05-21 16:32
Those still on their way to the second turn point are taking a very different route over launch rather than crossing the valley early, lets see if that works any better, if it's faster they might catch up with the leaders.2017-05-21 16:30
Nicola Donini, Ulrich Prinz and Luc Armant are on the ridge to the east of the main road, neck and neck with Ogi.2017-05-21 16:27
Kaoru Ogisawa's route in the middle of the vally seems to have paid off, he's caught up with the leaders. 'Ogi' competed a lot in Japan last year and won the Japanese league. He hasn't taken part in a Paragliding World Cup for many years, but chose this one for his come back as he loves it here and really wants to fly Gin's new Boomerang 11.2017-05-21 16:21
The leaders are working their way back to the ridge they were originally on. Honorin Hamard is in front but very low - 160m above the ground.2017-05-21 16:19
Ulrich Prinz is climbing, and at nearly 400m above the ground level, at 1100m so he's pretty comfortable.2017-05-21 16:15
Nicola Donini, son of Italian champion Luca Donini is at the front trying to maintain in +0.42017-05-21 16:13
Nobody has really managed to get away from the turn point, they are all really low trying to survive.2017-05-21 16:12
Kaoru Ogisawa has taken a different route out on his own in the main valley, he's got a cleaner airflow and has more ground clearance than the others but he has still to take the turn point.2017-05-21 16:10
The valley wind should be behind them now which should help as they fly north east to turn point 32017-05-21 16:08
The leaders have just taken the 2nd turn point but they are all very low2017-05-21 16:04
There is a lot of cirrus about, Laurie Genovese is low (155m above the ground) at the end of the ridge but looks like she has got a climb.2017-05-21 16:01
Flying Scotsman Brendan Reid has just taken the lead. Go Scotland… OOoopsy, and go France, Italy, Poland, Switzerland, Venezuela, Norway, South Korea, Germany, Turkey, Japan, Russia, Portugal, Sweden, Brazil, USA, Spain, Austria, South Africa, Hungary, Serbia, Netherlands, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Belgium, Macedonia, Mexico, Iran, Canada and Brazil. Oh and get a move on the English.2017-05-21 15:56
Talking of which, Laurie has just taken the lead, she is always very well placed overall in Cat 2 comps and usually on the women's podium. Definitely one who will be fighting for a top women's place in this Paragliding World Cup.2017-05-21 15:54
The task setting committee are Laurie Genovese and Andreas Malecki2017-05-21 15:53
The cyclinder for turn point 2 is at La Rochette, sadly for the pilots rapidly approaching it on a very nice little ridge, the ridge is about to peter out, they'll have a lot of work to do to get the turn point - well done the task setting committee.2017-05-21 15:50
The lead group are all taking a climb, Luc is at the top of the climb2017-05-21 15:48
Luc Armant is still out in front with Ulrich Prinz behind him2017-05-21 15:47
The leaders have now crossed the valley and connected with the ridge on the south east side of the valley.2017-05-21 15:43
Xevi Bonet Dalmau is with the leaders too, he's a real podium magnet. He's one of the most consistent podium reaching pilots. As Felix Rodriguez Fernandez described Xevi, 'the way he flies is amazing, he's like a bird'.2017-05-21 15:41
What an amazing sight watching a steady stream of pilots straight lining it high above the goal field - they're all at about 1400m, nobody is stopping, nobody is turning, they're all full on racing.2017-05-21 15:35
Alexandre Jofresa is with the lead gaggle, he's an experienced XC pilot, he did an amazing FAI triangle of 280 km in July 2016 from Col Agnel with turn points at Pic de Chamatte, Roche Courbe and Grand Queyras.2017-05-21 15:33
The lead gaggle have just come out from behind the cliffs and into view of the landing field.2017-05-21 15:31
Aaron Durogati is in second place just behind Luc. There is a great article about 2016 Super Final winner and Fashion victim, Aaron DUROGATI, in our partner XC magazine's April 2017 issue, he's pictured heavily camouflaged, wearing a suit and with no underwear showing!!!!!2017-05-21 15:26
Everyone seems to be following the same ridge run back down from Annecy, except for Yassen who is still taking the tourist route - he was also seen wandering around with an iron this morning!2017-05-21 15:23
The conditions are quite difficult, stable and with capped and broken thermals, it's not easy going but not beyond the pilot's here.2017-05-21 15:21
The leaders have just got back onto the Dent d'Arclusaz - the cliffs opposite HQ.2017-05-21 15:19
The lead gaggle of six have broken away from the rest now and are about to come into sight of the goal field - unfortunately they then have another 2 turn points to get.2017-05-21 15:13
Charles Cazaux is just behing Luc, he's the only person to have won both the Worlds and the Super Final. I can't list his top ten places here as they won't all fit onto the scroll bar on the top of the live leaderboard!2017-05-21 15:11
Luc Armant is still in the lead, he's the brains and mad professor looks behind Ozone's new Enzo 3, he'll be very happy with his new toy today.2017-05-21 15:05
The leaders are now all coming back down Roc des Boeufs2017-05-21 14:57
Yassen Savov, who never ceases to amaze us, is apparently still flying.2017-05-21 14:53
Yassen Savov took quite a different route from everyone else today but unfortunatley it doesn't seem to have worked and he has landed south of Doussard.2017-05-21 14:46
The leaders are all very close together barely 2 km seperate the top 30 pilots.2017-05-21 14:45
Ulrich is consistently in the top 10 in the Paragliding World Cup, Europeans and Worlds and has lots of experience of flying in different locations around the world from Chelan in the US, to Lanzarote to the Karakorum in Pakistan.2017-05-21 14:43
Ulrich Prinz is in the lead, he knows this area really well.2017-05-21 14:42
The first 30 have all got the turn point and are coming back down the Dents De Lanfon2017-05-21 14:32
The leaders have now all got the first turn point Pierre Remy, Luc Armant and Ulrich Prinz2017-05-21 14:30
Pierre Remy is about to start crossing the lake heading towards Talloires2017-05-21 14:30
They're all travelling in excess of 50 kmph2017-05-21 14:30
As you would expect crossing the lake, nobody is climbing.2017-05-21 14:30
All the pilots are pretty high, above 1200m2017-05-21 14:30
Those who have cossed the lake have now started to climb in +1 and +22017-05-21 14:11
The Leaders, Honorin Hamard, Pierre Remy, Luc Armant and Maxime Pinot are approaching Lake Annecy racing along the Roc Des Boeufs.2017-05-21 13:37
What an amazing sight, about 50 giders all climbing above the Col du Frene before heading over the back into the Massif des Bauges2017-05-21 13:29
The start is now open, off they head to Annecy, let's hope nobody goes for a dip in the lake.2017-05-21 13:21
The pilots are already well spread out on their way to the start. They are all on the ridge behind take off, some thermalling, some just going for it.2017-05-21 13:10
The pilots all see to be getting up quite easily today - all set for a great task.2017-05-21 13:06
They then need to wait for the start to open at 13.30 to the west of the Dent d'Arclusaz - the long rocky ridge above HQ at Chamousset2017-05-21 13:04
Most pilots are flying south to get the house thermal to give them enough height to get up onto the ridge behind the Montlambert launch.2017-05-21 12:54
There is a real launch frenzy at the moment, snowy peaks in front of launch, pilots climbing out above launch.2017-05-21 12:53
Young test pilots Idris Birch and Honorin Hamard are just taking off2017-05-21 12:48
Window opens at 12.50 the 1st pilots are off!2017-05-21 12:48
The task today looks great, up to Parmelan by Annecy, then down to Allevard before heading back towards HQ for a last 2 turn pts before goal at the farm2017-05-21 12:46
The task is set - todays race is a 128.56 km Race to Goal.
The window will open at 12:50 Local Time and the Start is at 13:30
2017-05-21 12:45
'A new wing and a new competition is always a very intense moment' Luc Armant told me2017-05-21 12:43
Idris Birch who came 11th in St Andre is really looking forward to putting his new toy, the Gin Boomerang 11, through it's paces.2017-05-21 12:41
Honorin Hamard World and European champion is also here keen to try out his new Enzo 32017-05-21 12:38
8 out of the top10 from the 2016 St Andre Paragliding World Cup are here.2017-05-21 12:35
Maxime Pinot winner of the 2016 St Andre Paragliding World Cup in similar alpine conditions is here. He did a great 170km tour of Mont Blanc 4 days ago with Julien Wirtz, Méryl Delferriere and Laurie Genovese.2017-05-21 12:30
In this comp we've also got a lot of the Super Final Superstars Aaron Durogati, Torsten Siegel, Charles Cazaux, Xevi Bonet Dalmau, Jean Marc Caron, Idris Birch, Pierre Remy, Antoine Gerin-jean, Tim Rochas, Jonathan Marin, Pierre Remy2017-05-21 12:24
This is the 1st Paragliding World Cup of the season so virtually everyone is here to battle it out from scratch for the precious Super Final places.2017-05-21 12:21
The pilot quality is amazing. The top 3 from the 2014 Coeur de Savoie Paragliding World Cup are here Felix Rodriguez Fernandez, Alfredo Studer and Clement Latour.2017-05-21 12:18
For those of you trying to find the town of Coeur de Savoie on your maps, we'll be flying in a sector between Albertville, Annecy, Chambery and Grenoble.2017-05-21 12:15
This should be a great day for seeing how all the new wings perform.2017-05-21 12:14
The briefing is taking place with a snow covered Mont Blanc in the background. There is a bit of cirrus but it shouldn't cause too many problems.2017-05-21 12:10
28 shiny new Ozone Enzo 3s are being laid out on the Montlambert launch alongside 28 brand new Gin Boomerang 11s.2017-05-21 12:06
Welcome to day 1 of the Coeur de Savoie Paragliding World Cup. The conditions today look fantastic. A 128km task has just been set.2017-05-21 09:34
Its the first day of the first event of the 2017 Paragliding World Cup and the weather looks good for the whole week. The pilots are leaving for the local takeoff at Montlambert and we are expecting a task to go north of Annecy then down to the south west of our location with the goal being HQ in Chamousset. Details will be here as soon as the task is set.2017-05-20 21:23
The pilots have been served the Registration Day dinner. We have a firework disply at 10:30.
Breakfast, tomorrow morning, will start at 08:00 with a briefing on the conditions and potential task at 09:00. The buses will depart for takeoff at 10:00.
2017-05-20 19:01
We are running late for the pilot briefing so registration is now Closed for today - remaining pilots should be at HQ at 0830 tomorrow morning (Sunday) in order to register - please do not go to takeoff without registering (you will not be included in the day if you are not registered).2017-05-20 18:54
The waypoints which were previously published on the local website have been changed before registration - official waypoints were uploaded during registration but if you have other instruments then these are the files you will need...
Coeur de Savoie, France-Waypoints.wpt
Coeur de Savoie, France-Airspace.txt
2017-05-20 12:06
Event 1 of the 2017 Paragliding World Cup begins today in Chamousset, Couer de Savoie, France. Registration will take place from 1500-1800 this evening and our first task is scheduled for tomorrow (Sunday) morning. More news after registration...
