posted Aug 7th, 2010 - Friday was the departure day for all delegations at the World Championship of Formation Skydiving 2010. It was not easy to leave Menzelinsk. The fires in Moscow are making life miserable for the citizens and also for the airlines and their pilots. The air traffic was still facing severe interference by the smoke, and many flights were canceled.

Some delegations, teams and competitors were lucky, as their flights to Moscow went on schedule, others were stuck in the airports around Menzelinsk for many hours. Logically, it was also difficult to leave Moscow for the connecting flights. The lucky ones who made it to Moscow on schedule still had no guarantee that they would also be able to continue the travel as planned.

The host in Menzelinsk supported all efforts to make it as easy as possible for the delegations to return to their homes, but that's all that could be done. The rest depended on Mother Nature, the air traffic controllers and the pilots.

The situation in Moscow is not enjoyable at all this year. It is extremely and unusually hot, and the smoke makes it even worse. The weather in Menzelinsk was hot too, but the air was clean, and skydivers need clear skies, good and warm weather.

The NSL News has made it to Moscow, but there is a 2-day delay for the connection. It does not look as if the weather conditions will improve much. However, Russian friends are helping the stranded participants and officials during their stay in Moscow, which is greatly appreciated by all.

Some of the officials and visitors in Menzelinsk are also trying to travel straight to Kolomna, host of the World Championships in Canopy Piloting next week. Kolomna is only less than 50 kilometers from Moscow, and the wild fires are also jeopardizing this event.

Last NSL Talk live from Menzelinsk: French 4-way and 8-way world champions

The NSL News goes back to a happier day of the world meet in Menzelinsk. The old and new French 4-way and 8-way world champions took some extra time after the award ceremony to visit the NSL News for a new NSL Talk session. It was the last live show from Menzelinsk.

It was a very interesting mix of brandnew first-time 8-way world champions (Arnaud Mille, Julie Olek, Thomas Perrin-Gachadoat), 3-time consecutive 8-way world champions (Mathieu Bernier, Clement Martin St. Leon), former 4-way and current 8-way world champions (Martial Ferre, Erwan Pouliquen), 2-time world champion of 2006 and 2010 (Damien Sorlin), alternate Bruno Perin and videographer Sylvain Girault.

The team members said that it was the first time in France that world meet rookies won gold medals at the first attempt. They also explained that all 4-way and 8-way team members worked together to allow Mathieu Bernier win two gold medals and make skydiving history. He is now a celebrity in France, and his team mates left no doubt about that at the end of the NSL Talk session.