IDNtribune.com – Central Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, is hosting the 2024 Paragliding Accuracy World Cup. A total of 60 pilots from 10 countries are participating in this prestigious world paragliding championship. The first flight took off on Friday morning, July 12, 2024.

The orange hues of the morning sun marked the opening flight of the 2024 Paragliding Accuracy World Cup at the Skylancing paragliding site in West Praya, Central Lombok. Sixty paragliding pilots from ten countries had been preparing since early morning.

The wind, blowing at about 16-18 kilometers per hour that morning, was considered a blessing by the pilots. The parachutes opened immediately after the control lines were pulled.

And whoosh… The parachutes fully opened, causing the pilots to dance across the skies of Central Lombok towards the landing site. Meanwhile, other pilots were getting ready to take off.

The Skylancing launch site in Central Lombok is an extraordinary spot for paragliding pilots.

Listen to the statement of Assayyid Al Hazmy, a senior paragliding pilot from the United Arab Emirates.

“The wind at Skylancing is very strong, but I try to do my best. I am not a professional paragliding pilot; I am a professional skydiver, but I am doing my best,” he said.

This Paragliding Accuracy World Cup is the fifth series out of a total of five. The first series was held in Thailand, the second in Alanya, Turkey, the third in Taldykorgan, Kazakhstan, in June 2024, and the fifth is now being held in Skylancing, Central Lombok. The fifth series will be held in Germany.

Colonel Erwin Sugiandi, Chairman of the 2024 PGAWC Organizing Committee, stated that international pilots are very enthusiastic about participating in this championship.

“They highly appreciate the beauty of Lombok, especially the Skylancing paragliding take-off site, which they consider the most beautiful and the best they have ever experienced in this event,” said Erwin.

This world paragliding championship features four categories: U26, overall, team, and female glider. Muhammad Akmaluddin bin Mohd. Nafi, a U26 pilot from Malaysia, hopes to become the winner of this championship.

“The target is to win. A big target. There are eight athletes from Malaysia. The target is to win. God willing,” said the 17-year-old.

The world championship will take place from July 11 to 14, 2024. Visitors can watch the pilots in action live without any entry fee to the paragliding take-off site. ***