The World Gliding Championships (WGC) is a gliding competition held roughly every two years by the FAI Gliding Commission. The dates are not always exactly two years apart, often because the contests are always held in the summer in either the Southern Hemisphere or Northern Hemisphere.
Gliding had been a demonstration sport at the 1936 Summer Olympics and was due to become an official Olympic sport in the Helsinki Games in 1940. However, since the Second World War, gliding has not featured in the Olympics, and so the World Championships are the highest level in the sport. There are now contests for six classes of glider and so in recent years the Championships have been divided between two locations. The women's, junior, grand prix and aerobatic events are also held separately.
Each of the following entries give the year and location of the contest followed by the winner of each class, nationality and the glider used.
Gliding Grand Prix, or Sailplane Grand Prix (SGP), is a newer type of gliding competition. It has simpler rules and a more spectacular appearance than conventional soaring competitions. [21]
The Women's World Gliding Championships (WWGC) is a women-only gliding competition. From 1979 to 1999 women's gliding competitions were held as International European Women's Gliding Championships. [22]
The Junior World Gliding Championships (JWGC) is a competition for glider pilots under the age of 26. From 1991 to 1997, international junior gliding competitions were held as European Junior Gliding Championships.
This section needs expansionwith: 19th WGAC in Hungary in 2016 (results are missing). You can help by adding to it. (May 2023) |
World Glider Aerobatic Championships take place each year [24] (every two years until 2011) since 1985 under the auspices of the FAI. They are administrated by the FAI Aerobatics Commission "Commission Internationale de Voltige Aerienne" (CIVA). [25] The 2001 championships were part of the World Air Games. Since 1994, European Glider Aerobatic Championships are held in the years between the World Championships. Since 2010, an additional event is organized in a slightly less demanding "Advanced" category – the World Advanced Glider Aerobatic Championships (WAGAC). WAGAC is organized yearly, usually accompanying the WGAC. [26]
The MDM MDM-1 Fox is a Polish, composite mid-wing two-seater aerobatic glider with fixed undercarriage and conventional tail unit.
Competition aerobatics is an air sport in which ground-based judges rate the skill of pilots performing aerobatic flying. It is practised in both piston-powered single-engine airplanes and also gliders.
Margański & Mysłowski Zakłady Lotnicze is a Polish aircraft and glider manufacturer, located in Bielsko-Biała. It designs and manufactures unlimited category aerobatic gliders and powered aircraft, wind turbines and composite structures.
The International Gliding Commission (IGC) is the international governing body for the sport of gliding. It is governed by meetings of delegates from national gliding associations.
The European Gliding Championships is a gliding competition held every two years.
Catherine Maunoury is a French aerobatic pilot.
Jerzy Makula is a Polish pilot who won the FAI World Glider Aerobatic Championships seven times.
Markus Feyerabend is a German glider aerobatic pilot.
Ferenc Tóth is a Hungarian glider aerobatic pilot who won the FAI European Glider Aerobatic Championships 2000, 2006 and 2008, and the FAI World Glider Aerobatic Championships 2003. Furthermore, he won a gold medal at The World Games 2017 in Wroclaw, Poland.
Victor Tchmal was a Russian glider and powered aerobatic pilot.
Olaf Schmidt is a German glider aerobatic pilot.
Edward Makula was a Polish glider pilot and engineer.
Stanisław Makula a Polish glider aerobatic pilot. He took part in several Polish Glider Aerobatic Championships and FAI European and World Championships. Together with his father Jerzy Makula and Krzystof Brzakalik he won the team silver medal in the 11th FAI World Glider Aerobatic Championships in Serpukhov in 2005.
The SZD-59 Acro is a single-seat glass composite glider for aerobatics and cross-country flying by PZL Allstar of Bielsko-Biała, Poland.
The SZD-21 Kobuz was a single-seat aerobatic glider designed and built in Poland at Szybowcowy Zakład Doświadczalny in Bielsko-Biała from 1958.
The Swift S-1 is a single seat aerobatic glider manufactured by Polish company Swift Ltd.
Zbraslavice Airport is located 1,5 km North of the small city of Zbraslavice, near the main motorway nr. 126. between the city of Zbraslavice and Štipoklasy village in Central Bohemia. The airfield may be used by light aircraft, helicopters, gliders and ultralights. The keeper is civic society Aeroclub Zbraslavice. Zbraslavice airport is the synonym for superior gliding conditions among pilots and fans of aviation sports worldwide. Therefore, the airport is a place where a number of national and international competitions is held and a lot of pilots from the Czech Republic use the airfield as training base.
Luca Bertossio is an Italian aerobatics pilot performing glider aerobatics as competitor for the Italian National Glider Aerobatic Team and as a professional Airshow pilot and Flight Instructor.