posted Apr 10th, 2026 - Six rounds of 8-way competition and 4-way VFS followed the opening two 4-way rounds on Friday morning in France. The 4-way teams will take over the afternoon session again and are expected to complete at least four additional rounds.

The battle for 8-way medals has narrowed from four teams down to three, as the French team Nova was unable to keep pace with the two home squads—Aethers Nephtys and D'Arc8—nor with the reigning indoor and outdoor world champions from the United States, Paraclete XP8. After Round 6, Nova trails by 49 points from the leader and 29 points from the bronze medal position.

At this stage, even the contest for silver appears to be the only remaining duel in the 8-way competition. The combined strength of the 4-way Open Class leaders Aethers and the 4-way Women team Nephtys has proven even more dominant than expected, pulling decisively ahead of the rest of the field—mirroring Aethers’ control in the 4-way Open category. The French lead over XP8 stands at 19 points after Round 6, and it now seems highly unlikely that XP8 can halt the momentum of this merged lineup.

Meanwhile, China’s merged all-female 4-way teams have shown equally impressive progression, improving by more than three average points (from 20.0 to 23.3) since April 2025. However, the 8-way rivalry between the two Hell Week hosts—Paraclete XP (XP8) and Weembi Lille (D'Arc8)—remains thrilling, with only a single point separating them after Round 6.

FAI Indoor World Cup 2026			1		2		3		4		5		6		7		8		9		10		11		Total	Avg
Rank	8-way Open		J,20,C,4		10,O,L,M		B,21,N,H		14,F,3		18,16,9		E,6,8		19,1,Q		G,5,12		P,D,17,22		15,11,2		K,A,13,7		Total	Avg
1	Aethers Nephtys	FR	37		32		37		37		33		29		-		-		-		-		-		205	34.2
2	Paraclete XP8	US	36	-2	33		29	-3	34	-2	27	-3	27		-		-		-		-		-		186	31.0
3	D'Arc8	FR	36		28	-1	31		32	-2	30		28		-		-		-		-		-		185	30.8
4	Nova	FR	28	-1	25	-1	27		28		25		23	-1	-		-		-		-		-		156	26.0
5	China	CN	23	-2	26		22		24		23	-1	22		-		-		-		-		-		140	23.3
6	FLY X8	IT	25		23		22		22		22	-1	21		-		-		-		-		-		135	22.5
7	Netunos	BR	20	-3	19	-3	18	-2	20	-1	21	-1	21		-		-		-		-		-		119	19.8
8	Airbus	DE	20	-1	21		19		21		20		17		-		-		-		-		-		118	19.7
9	Octobuzz by Banter	UK	21		17		19		19	-1	18	-1	16	-1	-		-		-		-		-		110	18.3
10	Chicanovas	DE	20	-1	17		16	-2	20		16	-1	17		-		-		-		-		-		106	17.7
11	Infinite Octane XP	US	20	-1	19		16	-1	18	-2	17	-1	14	-3	-		-		-		-		-		104	17.3
12	Deton8	UK	13	-1	15		14	-1	15		14		14		-		-		-		-		-		85	14.2
13	Elev8	UK	10	-5	15	-2	15	-1	14	-1	13	-2	16		-		-		-		-		-		83	13.8

---

Aethers Nephtys - Paraclete XP8 - D'Arc8 in Round 1 of the FAI Indoor World Cup

---

French national coach Mathieu Bernier’s double-duty strategy for his top 4-way competitors appears to be working extremely well. The Aethers are, as expected, in first place in the 4-way Open Class competition, while Nephtys continue to challenge the Chinese team in 4-way Women.

Mathieu Bernier is once again pursuing the next milestone following his unique achievement in Menzelinsk 2010, where he became the only competitor to win gold medals in both 4-way Open and 8-way at the same world championship. He attempted to take it a step further in Tanay 2021—aiming for double gold medals for an entire lineup, rather than as an individual competitor, as he had done in 2010.

That effort fell short at the 2021 outdoor world championship, by which time he had already transitioned into the role of French national coach, although he still filled an open 8-way slot in Tanay. None of the three French teams secured a full set of gold medals, despite an extremely close 8-way competition that was decided by just one point after Round 7, when bad weather forced an early conclusion. This time, at Weembi Lille, both national 4-way teams are combining their full lineups for the 8-way event. If current standings hold, coach Mathieu Bernier could make history once again in formation skydiving competition.

---

---

Aethers Nephtys - Paraclete XP8 - D'Arc8 in Round 6 of the FAI Indoor World Cup

---