Epic Start of the Paragliding World Cup in Cameli

The day began early as we headed to takeoff at 8 am, greeted by the perfect artificial grass takeoff area. The forecast promised amazing conditions, with a cloudbase initially at 3800m, expected to rise to 4200m. The start was set for 12:30, and by 11:30, the first small clouds began forming, quickly lifting competitors to around 4000m. Despite tricky takeoff conditions due to constantly changing winds, everyone managed to get airborne in time.

“It’s impossible to have a bad task in amazing conditions like this” Darko Stankovski remarked after reaching the goal. He and Martin Jovanoski found an excellent line at the beginning of the task, allowing them to distance themselves from the rest of the field early on. Although the gaggle eventually caught up, the leading points they accumulated secured the win for Darko.

With 7m/s climbs, numerous convergences, and a high cloud base, the task was fast and competitive. The leading gaggle arrived at the goal with a significant margin of around 1400m, a result that was not entirely anticipated, as the female winner Violeta Jimenez shared with us.