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Support the NSL News in 2025 - Preview of FAI World Cup 2025

Did You Know...

... that the Golden Knights are on a long road to FAI world championship gold?

Golden Knights celebration at the USPA Nationals 2002
posted Jul 8th, 2025 - No country has won outdoor world championships in 8-way more often since 1985 than the United States. The U.S. national teams have taken home the William H. Ottley Sword for the 8-way world champions, also known as the Excalibur, at 16 of the 21 events since the current competition format was introduced in 1985.

The Golden Knights 8-way teams of the U.S. Army have contributed heavily to the account of the U.S. delegations in these 40 years of formation skydiving competition. In fact, the U.S. Army won ten of the 16 sets of FAI gold medals for the United States with their Golden Knights lineups. Additional names of Golden Knights members were also engraved on the 8-way Excalibur plaque when U.S. Army and Paraclete XP joined forces for the GKXP8 lineup and won 8-way gold medals at Crystal Coast last year.

The U.S. dominance has not been as overwhelming in 4-way as it has been in 8-way. U.S. teams won 4-way gold medals ten times at the same 21 world championships since 1985. Yet it seems to be difficult to comprehend that there is still not one single name of a Golden Knights member on the 21 plaques of the 4-way Excalibur. Arizona Airspeed (1995, 1997, 2001, 2008, 2012, 2022, 2024), DeLand Air Bears (1985), DeLand Majik (2004) and DeLand Fire (2006) collected the FAI 4-way gold medals for the U.S. delegations at world championships.

4-way and 8-way medals at FAI World Championships between 1985 and 2024
Golden Knights at the FAI World Championship 2003
Golden Knights 4-way teams competed twice for U.S. delegations at world championships in the past. The Golden Knights 8-way lineup with team captain Andy Gerber represented the United States in 4-way, as well, at the world championship in Brazil 1987. The double duties generated gold medals in 8-way and silver medals in 4-way. German TV producer Hans-Joachim Gally documented the event, and the show included an interview with Golden Knights member J.C. Coffman.

Eric Heinsheimer, John Hoover, Kurt Isenbarger and Chris Talbert competed for the U.S. delegation in Gap 2003, with Tal Hunter on camera. The Golden Knights had won a 10-round battle over Arizona Airspeed and DeLand Majik at the USPA Nationals 2002 and then ended up 15 points behind the French 4-way team on their home turf in Gap a year later.

The USPA Nationals 2002 was the last time that a Golden Knights 4-way team represented their country with a U.S. delegation at a world championship, and the 4-way Excalibur has not made it yet to the Golden Knights headquarters. The current Golden Knights 4-way team plans to change the situation and become the first U.S. Army 4-way lineup with their names on the sword's 2026 plaque. Team captain Jesse Stahler, with Nick Birkner, Mike Connors and Mitch Stockenberg in the lineup, Skyler Romberg on camera, are on their way to win this year's national outdoor championship as the first step of the journey to becoming 4-way world champions.

FAI World Championship 1987
12345678910TotalAvg
Rank4-way Open Top 10TBDTBDTBDTBDTBDTBDTBDTBDTBDTBDTotalAvg
1TAG Team FR 1313141613141413121213413.4
2Golden Knights US 1310111612141412131312812.8
3Amadeus AT 1211111511111312111111811.8
4Italy IT 1111121211121311111211611.6
5Russia RU 911121311131311111111511.5
6Australia AU 1013111111111411111111411.4
7China CN 10781211131211111210710.7
8New Zealand NZ 71312131113101110510510.5
9Belgium BE 91071111111111111010210.2
10Switzerland CH 10111091010111010910010.0

FAI World Championship 1987, produced by Hans-Joachim Gally
Golden Knights at the Shamrock Showdown 2025
The current lineup focuses only on 4-way this year, after two years of double duties with GKXP8. They have been working closely together with coach Niklas Hemlin, Airspeed 4-way world champion of 2012, 2022 and 2024. They have defeated the new Airspeed lineup three times this year, first at the national indoor championship in February, and they confirmed their top position at two outdoor meets after that, first at the Shamrock Showdown in April, followed by the Paraclete XP Summer Classic last month.

The Golden Knights are not in a secure position by now at all, as Arizona Airspeed will use the four months until the USPA Nationals to turn the table at the most important event for both teams in October, on their home turf in Eloy. Only the winner of this U.S. showdown will compete for FAI gold medals and their names on the 4-way Excalibur in 2026.

The Golden Knights had a 2-year head start with the current lineup, and they are ahead of Airspeed at the moment. They have to maintain the lead until October, which will be challenging enough with a very eager Airspeed lineup. After that, the even bigger job is still waiting. The French Aethers are far ahead at this point in time, and the Golden Knights travel to Europe soon for the FAI Outdoor World Cup 2025 at Skydive Teuge in the Netherlands. They will try to get closer to the new indoor world champions, and they will have to defeat France in 2026 to get their names on the 4-way Excalibur for the first time in the Golden Knights 4-way history.

FAI World Championship 2003
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Total Avg
Rank 4-way Open Top 10 1,11,12 M,J,E,10 K,16,6 13,14,5 D,22,4 9,C,Q,N F,19,21 2,20,L 18,B,3 8,P,7 Total Avg
1 Maubeuge FR 16 26 23 19 21 37 24 21 19 23 229 22.9
2 Golden Knights US 17 24 22 19 18 35 22 18 19 20 214 21.4
3 DeLand Norgies NO 13 24 21 19 18 36 19 16 19 21 206 20.6
4 Sebastian XL UK 14 22 21 19 17 34 21 18 19 20 205 20.5
5 Sinapsi PD IT 13 24 22 17 17 32 22 18 18 - 183 20.3
6 Endeavour CH 13 21 19 15 17 29 21 17 16 - 168 18.7
7 NMPV BE 15 19 19 16 15 29 19 16 16 - 164 18.2
8 EADS DE 14 19 17 15 15 26 17 16 16 - 155 17.2
9 Wild Wind RU 15 22 18 15 18 22 17 8 - - 135 16.9
10 Phenix SE 13 18 15 15 16 23 18 16 - - 134 16.8
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