posted Apr 12th, 2026 - The NSL News reported on April 10th that French national coach Mathieu Bernier “could be on the verge of writing the next historic chapter in formation skydiving competition.” By that point, six rounds had been completed in all events, and his teams—Aethers (4-way Open), Nephtys (4-way Women), and AethersNephtys (8-way Open)—were either leading (Aethers, 8-way) or in strong contention for first place (Nephtys).

China once again proved too strong in 4-way Women, capturing both gold and bronze with their two teams. Meanwhile, Aethers and the French 8-way combination of the two national 4-way teams pulled decisively ahead of the rest of the field in their events, ultimately securing a historic double-gold achievement by the end of the meet.

It marked the first time in history that a complete 4-way lineup won gold medals in both the 4-way and 8-way events at the same World Cup or World Championship. The French 8-way lineup had trained together for only a few hours before entering their first 8-way competition. They also had little time to celebrate, as Aethers is now en route to Florida to transition to outdoor training and prepare for their first competition of the year, the Shamrock Showdown 2026 - 1st Bob Hallett Memorial at Skydive DeLand. The NSL News hopes to feature NSL Live Talk, along with a review of the FAI Indoor World Cup 2026, offering direct insights from the team members and their coach.

FAI Indoor World Cup 2026			1		2		3		4		5		6		7		8		9		10		Total	Avg
Rank	4-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		Total	Avg
1	Aethers	FR	33	-1	37		42		30	-1	31		32		33		35		36		27		336	33.6
2	Golden Knights	US	32		34	-1	38	-2	29		29		29		30	-1	30	-1	33		26		310	31.0
3	NMP PCH HayaBusa	BE	31	-1	32	-3	42		29		30	-1	29		31		29		32	-1	22	-2	307	30.7
Rank	4-way Women		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		Total	Avg
1	China	CN	31		35		37	-1	26	-1	30		29		29	-1	30		32		23	-2	302	30.2
2	Nephtys	FR	29		36		33	-4	25	-2	27		26	-1	28		29		29		21		283	28.3
3	China	CN	27	-2	28	-2	29	-2	24		25	-2	27		25		27	-3	26	-3	20	-2	258	25.8

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Aethers in 4-way Open and Nephtys in 4-way Women

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National coach Mathieu Bernier had nearly achieved the same double-gold feat in outdoor competition at the FAI World Championship in Maubeuge 2008. The 4-way team (Mathieu and Guillaume Bernier, Julien Degen, Jérémie Rollett, with Fabrice Rieu on camera) formed half of the 8-way lineup that won gold by nine points (151–140) after seven rounds. In the 4-way event, they finished just one point behind Airspeed Odyssey when the competition concluded after Round 8.

Mathieu Bernier made another attempt two years later at the FAI World Championship in Menzelinsk 2010, this time with the support of the same 4-way teammates and a newly formed 8-way lineup. His 4-way team, again including his brother Guillaume Bernier, secured gold, while the new 8-way team added another gold medal—completing the French FS sweep in 2010. With that achievement, Mathieu Bernier became the first and only competitor in history to win FAI World Championship gold in both 4-way Open and 8-way Open at the same event.

The 2008 and 2010 competitions were outdoor world championships, making direct comparisons with this weekend’s double gold at Weembi Lille difficult. Each achievement came under very different conditions. What remains clear is that Mathieu Bernier still stands alone with his double gold in both events at an outdoor world championship. To match that accomplishment, he would need to bring Aethers and Nephtys together into the same 8-way lineup for Eloy in October this year. It would not be a “mission impossible,” as he attempted a similar approach in Tanay 2021—though without securing gold medals on that occasion.

FAI Indoor World Cup 2026			1		2		3		4		5		6		7		8		9		10		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		Total	Avg
1	Aethers Nephtys	FR	37		32		37		37		33		29	-1	32		29		32	-1	32		330	33.0
2	Paraclete XP8	US	36	-2	33		29	-3	34	-2	27	-3	27	-1	30		30	-2	33	-2	31		310	31.0
3	D'Arc8	FR	36		28	-1	31		32	-2	30		28	-2	29		30		33		32		309	30.9

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AethersNephtys in 8-way Open

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