Indoor Para Skydiving enters the calendar with its first FAI World Cup
The new discipline creates an international competition pathway for athletes with disabilities, ahead of inaugural world championships planned for 2027.
AI artFAI recognised Indoor Para Skydiving as the first para-sport discipline in its air-sports portfolio. The project moves to World Cup level in 2026, followed by planned inaugural world championships in 2027.
Why the wind tunnel
A controlled airflow makes it possible to build events and classifications without every barrier associated with an aircraft, exit and canopy flight. The discipline is not simply copied from existing indoor events: parameters and rules were developed for athletes with physical or cognitive disabilities.
From a French project to an FAI pathway
The discipline developed in France around the Fédération Française de Parachutisme. Recognition at the 2025 FAI commission meeting created a basis for an international calendar, common rules and a championship pathway.
The significance goes beyond one meet. A recognised discipline needs classification, judge development, national representation and a predictable athlete pathway. The World Cup is the first operational test of that system.
What to watch next
Published results, athlete experience and the evolution of sport classes before 2027 will show whether the structure can deliver both comparable and fair competition.