posted Oct 24th, 2026 - The 4-way Open Class competition more than made up for the lack of exciting battles in the other two Formation Skydiving events, delivering plenty of drama for both spectators and competitors. The NSL News had covered the situation after Round 8 in updates on Thursday, highlighting the strong position of Germany's Airbus Illertissen and featuring an NSL Live Talk with NMP PCH HayaBusa team captain Dennis Praet.

The weather refused to cooperate on Thursday, keeping all teams grounded. Friday, however, brought perfect conditions, allowing competition to resume smoothly across all events. In fact, the 8-way competition was already completed at around 9 a.m. on Friday, as the NSL News reported on October 23.

Both remaining rounds of 4-way Open Class added to the excitement that had defined the competition across the leaderboard from Round 1 through Round 8. The battle between the two medal contenders chasing Aethers Lille became an 11-round contest, as the teams were still tied after Round 10. They had been tied for second place after Round 8 and remained level through both of the final two rounds. The dramatic duel between Golden Knights and NMP PCH HayaBusa became one of the many highlights of the 4-way Open Class competition. The NSL News will take a closer look at this thrilling battle very soon.

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NSL TV Unfiltered: Round 9 in 4-way at the FAI Outdoor World Championship 2026

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Golden Knights and NMP PCH HayaBusa were both still aiming for first place after Round 8. Aethers Lille held a six-point lead, and there was little chance that the French team would give its two challengers enough room to close the gap. Events unfolded in the opposite direction: Aethers Lille won Round 9 as well, extending its lead to seven points. At that stage, it was virtually impossible for Golden Knights and NMP PCH HayaBusa to make up the deficit in the final round.

French national coach Mathieu Bernier still refused to accept that the title was decided before all the scores were posted. He would not entertain early congratulations, even though his teams had delivered impressive performances, regardless of the final medal results. However, he and Aethers new substitute tail, Clementine Le Bohec, were ready to join NSL Live Talk later on. The interview with Mathieu Bernier and the next female 4-way Open Class world champion will also be published very soon.

Aethers Lille did not win the final round, settling instead for a tie for the highest score. Across the competition, the lineup featuring substitute Clementine Le Bohec gave away just three of the ten rounds, won five and tied two. Both ties were with Golden Knights, with one also involving NMP PCH HayaBusa. The French team ultimately finished seven points ahead of both the U.S. team and the Belgians. For the first time, the names of all five Aethers Lille members will be engraved on the William H. Ottley Sword, awarded to the FAI 4-way world champions and often referred to as the “4-way Excalibur.” They will join the names of several previous French 4-way world champions on the prestigious trophy, including their own coach, Mathieu Bernier.

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NSL TV Unfiltered: Round 10 in 4-way at the FAI Outdoor World Championship 2026

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The NSL News had also noted on October 22 that Germany’s 4-way Open Class team, Airbus Illertissen, was in a situation very similar to that of Aethers Lille. After Round 8, the German team had built a five-point lead over its direct rival in the race for the unofficial amateur world championship title.

Sweden’s Echochamber had emerged as the strongest challenger among the contenders, and Airbus had clearly won Round 8 before Thursday’s weather delay. In fact, the Mack family—Thomas, Tim and Moritz, all members of the Airbus lineup—had already been confident enough after Round 6 to discuss their position with the NSL News. At that point, they held a lead of just two points over Echochamber.

Two rounds later, they had extended that advantage to five points and ultimately crossed the finish line with a comfortable seven-point lead. There was no need for any extraordinary effort in the final rounds to secure the victory. Airbus posted a 19.9 average, by far the highest result for this lineup. The team narrowly missed the 20-point average benchmark, with a point deduction in the final round—or an earlier infringement—making the difference.

Airbus can now celebrate the best finish by a German 4-way team in the country’s Open Class history since 1985. The team also brings the unofficial amateur world championship title back to Germany. Echochamber had won a similar head-to-head battle at Crystal Coast 2024, finishing six points ahead. At Eloy 2022, the British team Chimera had finished ahead of both Airbus and Echochamber.

FAI Outdoor World Championship 2026			1		2		3		4		5		6		7		8		9		10		11		Total	Avg
Rank	4-way Open/Women Combined		11,16,10		9,17,4		J,D,E,19		1,14,H		K,M,2,O		B,18,6		A,N,7,8		P,L,C,12		F,3,13		20,G,22		Q,15,5		Total	Avg
1	Aethers Lille	FR	18	-1	27		38	-1	23		33		25		26	-1	26	-3	27		21		-		264	26.4
2	Golden Knights	US	18	-1	25		33	-3	21		33		24		25	-2	31		26		21		23	-1	257	25.7
3	NMP PCH HayaBusa	BE	21		26		32	-3	21	-2	31	-2	23	-1	27	-2	29	-1	26		21		23	-1	257	25.7
4	Nephtys Maubeuge	FR	17		17	-2	29		19		26		19		21		22	-1	21		15	-1	-		206	20.6
5	Airbus 4-way Illertissen	DE	17		19	-1	25	-2	18		22	-2	18	-1	21		23	-1	21		15	-1	-		199	19.9
6	Echochamber	SE	13	-2	19		25	-1	18		24	-1	18		22		19	-5	18	-1	16		-		192	19.2
7	Skywalkers Most	CZ	13	-4	15	-3	26	-2	14	-3	22		19		23		18	-5	21	-1	18		-		189	18.9
8	Qatar Vortex	QA	13	-3	17	-2	27		16		23		16	-1	20	-1	19	-4	21		16		-		188	18.8
9	S.O.A.R.	UK	15	-1	16	-3	22	-3	18		22	-1	18		22		19	-1	18		16		-		186	18.6
10	Out Of The Blue	NL	14		17		23	-1	13		25		18		19		17	-2	17		15	-1	-		178	17.8
11	Ranch TNT SDAZ	US	11	-1	15		21		15		19		16		18		19		16		13	-1	-		163	16.3
12	Thyra	NO	12	-2	11		15	-2	11		18		13		15		14		14		11	-1	-		134	13.4
13	Amnesya Fly X	IT	12	-1	16		22	-2	15	-1	20		13	-1	14	-3	19		0		0		-		131	13.1
14	Flyspot Sky4Four	PL	9	-2	11	-2	12	-4	13		16		12		15		14		12		11		-		125	12.5
15	Random Fixation	AU	8	-3	14		14	-2	8	-3	15		14		13	-2	13		12	-2	12		-		123	12.3
16	Funky Falcon	NL	8	-1	8	-2	13		10	-1	13	-1	9	-2	12		6	-2	12		10		-		101	10.1
17	MeXtreme	MX	7		9		9		8		11		5	-1	7	-2	7	-2	6		7		-		76	7.6

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