posted Feb 20th, 2017 - The Sun Path Products NSL News had to cover sad news on 4 May 2015. Nikolay Vylegzhanin, member of Russia's national 4-way and 8-way Barkli lineups at the FAI World Meet 2014 in Prostejov, had died in a BASE jump accident shortly after the competition in the Czech Republic. Bad luck continued for Russia's Formation Skydiving community, and especially for the same 8-way team.

Nikolay Sukharnikov was one of Nikolay Vylegzhanin's 8-way team mates in Prostejov, and together they had won the 8-way silver medals for Russia. He lost his life in a car crash on December 16th last year. He was on his way back home at night after wind tunnel training in Moscow.

FAI World Meet 1999			1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Total	Avg
Rank	8-way Open		15,7,13	B,12,E,3	20,K,11	23,H,J	F,2,8	D,6,P,22	N,A,M,G,16	21,L,14	10,C,4	1,9,O	Total	Avg
1	Arizona Airspeed	US	22	25	20	20	16	22	25	19	21	21	211	21.1
2	Russia	RU	20	23	20	23	14	19	26	19	22	23	209	20.9
3	Maubeuge	FR	15	21	22	23	13	21	26	19	20	20	200	20.0

Nikolay Sukharnikov and Nikolay Vylegzhanin were both very popular and beloved Russian skydivers with a wealth of competition experience and talent. Nikolay Sukharnikov was a member of the first and original 8-way project of the early 90s that laid the foundation for Russia's 8-way gold medals in 2001 and 2003 and made Russia one of the world's three 8-way powerhouses.

Some of his original team mates (Viktor Gorbunkov, Vladimir Pavlenko, Oleg Shalamykhin, Sergey Shenin, Mihail Mineev, Aleksander Mertz, Dmitriy Samohval) are still as active in 4-way and 8-way competition as Nikolay Sukharnikov was himself.

He challenged Arizona Airspeed with the Russian 8-way team of 1999 for the gold medals and finished two points behind in 2nd place. Then he won with Russia's 2001 lineup by one single point, again over Arizona Airspeed. It became even more dramatic in 2003 when Airspeed and Russia had to go into extra time, and Nikolay Sukharnikov won his second gold medal in the jump-off round.

FAI World Cup 2013		1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Total	Avg
Rank	8-way Open	O,4,H,3	9,17,P	L,1,G,12	7,10,21	16,E,A,15	8,2,B	18,5,Q	F,14,K,N	M,C,D,13	20,J,19	Total	Avg
1	France A	29	18	23	17	30	18	19	22	21	18	215	21.5
2	Russia	23	14	20	13	19	12	17	19	20	16	173	17.3
3	France B	22	13	17	13	19	14	15	18	15	14	160	16.0

He was back with Russia's new 8-way team Evolution Pro in Rijeka 2004 for a 3-team and 5-point battle with France and Airspeed. Russia ended up in 3rd place this time, and Nikolay Sukharnikov won another bronze medal with Evolution Pro two years later in Gera.

Russia had a new 8-way lineup in 2007, and Nikolay Sukharnikov was once again invited. However, the team did not attend the FAI World Meet 2008 in Maubeuge, France, and that was the only reason why Nikolay Sukharnikov did not bring home a medal from an FAI World Championship of Formation Skydiving since 1993.

He was not on the Russian Barkli lineups between 2009 and 2012 that won two more sets of bronze medals in Menzelinsk 2010 and Dubai 2012. Then he came back with the 2013 lineup after the 5-year break.

FAI World Meet 2014			1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	T.	Avg
R.	8-way Open		E,3,C,5	F,G,D,21	19,H,2	M,4,1	O,14,A,P	8,J,16	7,11,12	22,20,15	17,G,18	13,B,9	Q,10,N,L	T.	Avg
1	Golden Knights	US	24	22	15	26	22	21	19	26	21	20	-	216	21.6
2	Barkli	RU	19	18	13	25	14	16	16	19	18	13	20	171	17.1
3	Venturi	FR	19	16	14	23	18	13	18	19	15	16	19	171	17.1

The new Barkli lineup, with Nikolay Sukharnikov and Nikolay Vylegzhanin both in the team, won the jump-off round in Prostejov 2014 over France for the silver medals. It was the second time that Nikolay Sukharnikov won a tie-breaker jump-off round at a world meet.

The World Meet 2014 in Prostejov was the last international competition that Nikolay Sukharnikov and Nikolay Vylegzhanin both attended.

Nikolay Vylegzhanin died shortly afterwards, and Nikolay Sukharnikov did not come back with the new Russian 8-way team from Tanay in 2015, who competed for Russia at the FAI Mondial 2016. He died two years after Nikolay Vylegzhanin, and the world's Formation Skydiving community is mourning the heavy Russian losses.