August 31, 2024
We have two World Champions! At the 38th World Gliding Championship, Karl and Sarah today prevailed in the 20-Meter Multiseat class. They are the first US champions in an “unrestricted entry” World Gliding Championship since Doug Jacob’s 1985 victory in Rieti, Italy (37 years ago). Sarah is the first woman from any country ever to win at this level. Karl, at 87, is far and away the oldest-ever soaring world champion.
(As I read these words I’ve written, I’m thinking: “Did this really happen? Can these improbable-sounding statements actually be true? Well, yes, it did. Yes, they are.)
The flight they flew today to secure the championship was exactly what they needed. Over 10 days, their consistent flying had built a useful, but certainly not insurmountable lead. Their assignment on the 11th and last was to make another steady flight, aiming not to win the day but to reduce risk and achieve a total score that their rivals could not overtake. Weather was forecast to be good, but with a meaningful chance of vertical overdevelopment producing rain and even thunderstorms, said to be possible anywhere in the task area.
They started in the middle of the pack, with a number of good teams ahead to help mark the right route choices. They consistently found good climbs, stayed high and always out of trouble, preferring to stay with a few others rather than break away, seeking a few more points. On their way home from the final turn area, they took a thermal climb that probably wasn’t essential, but which bought “insurance” against possible bad air ahead, at the cost of delaying their finish by perhaps a minute. The result was 4th place for the day and a score of 922 points, which guaranteed the victory. As they crossed the finish ring, not all eyes were dry.
In 18-Meter class, the Germans dominated, Stefan Langer taking the gold medal by more than 200 points. Sean Fidler finished 10th (top-10 is the sign of an outstanding effort). Sean Murphy was 27th – he had to find a glider on short notice and struggled to adapt to it and its unfamiliar instrumentation.
In Open Class, the formidable German pair of Felipe Levin and Michael Sommer were at the top, hundreds of points ahead of the rest. Jim Lee managed a very commendable 6th; Keith Baugh, flying his first WGC in a “short-winger” (21 meters) was 12th.
Overall, the US Team performance was the best in a very long time. Full credit to Team Captain Pete Alexander, who has uncommon skills and just the right touch in a job that at times must feel like herding cats. US Team crews worked harder, longer and in tougher conditions than at essentially any other contest site (typically on the job around dawn and often not done until past sunset) and were consistently up to the challenge.
The WGC2024 closing ceremony will take place tomorrow morning at 9:00 – the Star-Spangled Banner will be heard for the first time in 37 years. This is my final report.
John Good