posted Sep 30th, 2012 - The NSL News has recently given the situation of the top 4way and 8way teams in the world more thought as the World Meet 2012 comes closer and closer.

France (Aerodyne Aerokart and Aerodyne Maubeuge) and Russia (Sky Panthers Barkli) try to win the best medals they can get with 4way teams who are also competing in 8way. The 4way and 8way lineups are the best in those two countries in both events.

Belgium's 4way team NMP-PCH Hayabusa focuses only on 4way, while another lineup competes for Belgium in 8way. Both US teams, Arizona Airspeed in 4way and Golden Knights in 8way qualified only in one event and give it full attention.

The commitment of the Golden Knights to winning the gold medals this year shows even more with a surprising decision that team leader Brian "BK" Krause made this year. His 8way lineup will only compete in this event at the USPA Nationals 2012 and skip the 4way competition.

It is very unusual that the US Army delegation skips any event at the USPA Nationals. It has happened only one time since 1997 that only one team attended the event. The Golden Knights were in a transition period to resuming 8way competition when only one 4way lineup competed in 2004.

That transition period actually began earlier when the Golden Knights had no winning team any longer. The Golden Knights represented the USA in 4way at the World Meet 2003 after winning the USPA Nationals 2002 over DeLand Majik and Arizona Airspeed. However, DeLand Majik then took over 4way competition, followed by DeLand Fire, while Airspeed still dominated the 8way competition in the USA.

The USPA Nationals in 2006 and 2007 were somehow in between for the Golden Knights until Brian Krause launched the whole new project with a new 8way team and the female lineup. The Knights had a strong 4way lineup in those two years and not really a serious 8way team supported by the US Army (Golden Nuggets, KnightTrax).

Team leader Brian Krause and the new Golden Knights delegation made 8way and the female 4way delegation the main priority from the beginning. However, there was always 4way training and competition for the Black and Gold lineups, and all Golden Knights teams still attended the USPA Nationals in 2009, 2010 and 2011.

The 4way skills were even important for the development of the 8way team, as Brian Krause explained to the NSL News earlier this year. Both way lineups still competed at this year's Paraclete XP Indoor Championships in February.

Team leader Brian Krause and 8way team captain Sean Sweeney then decided to focus only on 8way for the first time at the Paraclete XP Outdoor Championship 2012. The Russian 8way team visited in DeLand, and the Golden Knights wanted to avoid any distraction from their main event.

The Black team competed one more time at the May meet of the Carolina Skydiving League, which would be the last 4way competition for the Golden Knights this year.

Brian Krause and Sean Sweeney did not know by then that the Golden Knights would also skip the USPA Nationals this year, but it is a fact now that the US Army team will compete only in 4way Women and 8way. Then they will do this again at the Mondial 2012 in Dubai in November where Arizona Airspeed competes for the USA in 4way.