posted Aug 8th, 2008 - The drama in the 8-way polls for the World Meet 2008 continues.

Italy is now in 1st place, France wins the silver medals, and the USA has only the bronze medals.

The NSL News commented in the 8-way article on 6 August 2008 that the US 8-way team is not even thinking of a serious competition with Italy's 8-way team Ex3mo. This was only NSL News commentary and did not express the thoughts of any of the US team members.

However, the NSL had planned an interview with the defending 8-way world champions and world record holders of 1997, Eric Heinsheimer and John Hoover, before Italy had taken the lead in the polls. The two 8-way competitors accepted the invitation and visited the NSL office in Maubeuge.

There was enough time on Friday morning since the weather has not improved much since Thursday afternoon. Almost the whole field of 4-way and 8-way teams is now at the competition site, and many of them are still hoping to get familiar with the air over Maubeuge by making a few training jumps.

The NSL News coverage of the FAI World Meet 2008 is brought to you with the help of:

Friday is the last training day before the official part of the World Meet 2008 begins. Saturday is the official training day on the event agenda. That's the time when the judges will use the newest videos to test the technical procedures and see the first jumps on the latest and highest performance level.

The NSL-TV interview took place in the media room of the facilities in Maubeuge. The friendly media staff, Kristell Le Bars and Caroline Jeanny, have been kindly supporting the NSL News work agenda. They have also set up the office space for the NSL News in the media room.

The French media work for the event already showed the first success. A nice clip with a preview of the upcoming competition was broadcast this morning in one of the major French TV channels. The clip was shown right after the latest preview of the Olympic Games in China. The timing could not have been any better.

Patrice Girardin is once again the Meet Director, this time in Maubeuge. He had also managed the World Meet 2003 in Gap, France, which ran perfectly throughout the whole week and offered great entertainment for the general public. Patrice Girardin had much better weather for his event in the French Alpes in 2003.

This time, he is at a different location, right next to the Belgian border. The weather seems to be critical for the upcoming week, and he has his staff prepared for very efficient use of the precious air time.

This morning, he was still busy giving the competition site the final touch.

The technical part of the NSL-TV interview and other photography is supported by Nathan Polis, a young NSL News and Hayabusa fan from Belgium. He contacted the NSL News earlier this year and offered his help in the NSL News and NSL-TV area.

He is not an active skydiver yet, although he has already spent some windtunnel time with Hayabusa member Andy Grauwels at Aerokart in Paris, France.

However, it turned out that Nathan Polis has another very close connection to skydiving. His father Bernard Polis is a multiple Belgian Accuracy champion.

His grandfather, Jean Polis, was the Co-President of the Belgian Parachuting Federation and IPC Delegate for many years. Skydive Arizona owner Larry Hill has been friends with the Polis family for a long time. In fact, his wife Lillian is originally from Belgium where they also met for the first time. She was one of Jean Polis' students back then.

Nathan Polis visited Arizona three years ago and met Larry Hill again this morning in Maubeuge. Larry Hill did not know that the young man was actively involved in the NSL News coverage of the World Meet 2008.

Another surprise visit is most likely happening this Sunday. All three generations of the Polis family will join when father Bernard and grandfather Jean will visit the competition site.

It is obviously no surprise that Nathan Polis is impressed by the Canadian LeMay family 4-way team, Evolution. However, he still feels closer to his Belgian roots and cheers for the Belgian top contender in the 4-way Open Class, Hayabusa Defence.

The first NSL-TV interview from Maubeuge already offers better quality and professional features, thanks to the young expert from Belgium. Media expert John Hoover, maker of the Paraclete XP Money Meet DVD, noticed the more professional equipment and asked a few specific questions.

During the interview, the two Golden Knights were seated right next to the 8-way Excalibur sword, which has their names on the plate of the World Meet 1997.

They had not seen the sword ever since they held it on the podium in Turkey. Then they answered a few questions of the NSL News. The video of the live interview can be viewed by clicking here.

18th FAI World Formation Skydiving Championships 2008
Who will win medals in 8-way?	France - Maubeuge USA - KnightTrax Italy - Ex3mo Germany - EADS United Kingdom - Connextion
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