Union Minister of Civil Aviation, Mr. P Gajapati Raju flags off AAI
Paragliding World Cup
Vijyender Sharma
Dharmshala---Bir Billing, October 24: *The AAI Paragliding World Cup got underway with the Union Minister of Civil Aviation, Mr. P Gajapati Raju, flagging off thepilots from the Billing launch site for the official practice here on
Saturday. Despite slightly overcast conditions, the pilots took to the
skies amidst cheers of encouragement from the crowd that thronged Billing
since early morning.
With most of the 130 pilots representing more than 35 countries taking part
in the AAI Paragliding World Cup arriving at Bir, the mecca of aero-sport
in the country wore a festive look.
Before flagging off, the minister had words of praise for the organisers
and the participants. "The picturesque setting of Bir Billing provides a
perfect backdrop for the biggest aero sport event in the country. It's
heartening to see such enthusiastic participation and I am sure both the
organisers and participants will do their best to preserve the beauty of
the place. I also congratulate the state government for their wholehearted
support for the AAI Paragliding World Cup," said P Gajapati Raju.
The AAI Paragliding World Cup is easily the biggest sporting event in terms
of international participation and the number of sportspersons. With Aero
Sports being extremely popular in these parts, Bir Billing is buzzing with
excitement in anticipation on seeing the best pilots from around the world
and India in action.At the organisational level, the organisers of the event, Billing
Paragliding Association, and title sponsor, Airports Authority of India,
have left no stone unturned to deliver a classy event.
"We are thrilled to see months of preparations and hard work has enabled us
to put together a world-class event. Seeing the turnout of people today for
the official practice, we can confidently say that the AAI Paragliding
World Cup will take the sport to the next level," said Mr. Sudhir Sharma,
President Billing Paragliding Association and also Minister for Town
Planning and Tourism, Himachal Pradesh
The Airports Authority of India has provided unstinted in bringing this
premier paragliding event to the country. "We are extremely pleased to be
associated with the Paragliding World Cup. For the Airports Authority of
India, this event provides a percent fit. With increasingly more number of
youngsters taking to adventure sport, we see a great opportunity to take
paragliding to the next level," said R.K Srivastava, Chairman Airports
Authority of India.
For the first time GAGAN (GPS Aided GEO Augmented Navigation is an India
SBAS (Satellite Based Augmentation System) Programme jointly developed by
India Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the Airports Authority of
India will be used for live tracking of the pilots. AAI is providing the
pilots with GAGAN signals for accurate navigation and tracking facility.
For the first time GAGAN enabled Accord receivers have been put to use in
the Indian airspace.Mr. Rajesh Srivastava, Sr. Vice President of BPA, has been the driving
force in organising this aero sports extravaganza. "A lot of work has gone
into this event and it will continue till the very end. Seeing the response
of the people and participants gives us immense pleasure. A lot of hard
work has gone into making this event a grand success."
He added, "Our safety systems and other technical aspects are all in place
for the week-long event. I am confident that this event will give a massive
boost to the sport in the country."
The field at the AAI Paragliding World Cup is one of the strongest on the
Tour. With three of the world's top four, including one of the all-time
greats, Julien Wirtz of France, who has been No. 1 in the world for 20 of
the last 25 months. He is currently ranked No. 3 in the world, one behind
Vidic Jurij of Slovenia, who unseated Wirtz from No. 1 in spot in July
before losing it himself.
Vidic Jurij (Slovenia), Julien Wirtz (France) and Torsten Siegel (Germany)
hold the spots from second to fourth in the world and also in Europe.
Another big name in the field is Frenchman Maxime Pinot, winner of the 2014
Super Cup in Turkey, who is now No. 8 in the latest world rankings.
The Indian challenge will be led by Ajay Kumar, who is the country's one of
the most experienced pilots. The Indian contingent comprising Ajay Kumar,
Gurpreet Dhindsa, Jyoti Thakur, Arvind Pal, Prakash Chand, Gautam Nath and
Sanjay Kumar is expected to perform well given that they enjoy the
advantage of knowing the local conditions and have practiced in the region.
The Indian team will enjoy a strong local support because five pilots
belong to Himachal Pradesh.A glittering cultural programme and lighting of the ceremonial lamp by the
Union Minister of Civil Aviation, Mr. P Gajapati Raju along with other
dignitaries at the world-famous Sherabling Monastery last night marked the
official opening of the event.
*About Billing Paragliding Association*
*The Billing Paragliding Association formed in 2006 had successfully
organised the Pre-World Cup of Paragliding at the same venue in 2013 to
test the waters with extremely encouraging results and great response,
which paved the way for the World Cup to be brought here.*
* The BPA is the only organization recognised by Aero Club of India, which
in turn is the only body recognised by Fédération Aéronautique
Internationale (FAI), the governing world body for air sports, and the
Paragliding World Cup Association (PWCA). The FAI was formed in 1905.*
* As a competitive sport, Paragliding has already featured in some Games
like the South-East Asian Games and the Asian Beach Games. Paragliding was
also short-listed in the initial list of new events for the 2020 Olympics,
but will now be considered for the 2024 Olympic Games.*
* About Bir Billing*
* Bir Billing is considered the second best paragliding spot in the world
and steps have been taken to develop infrastructure of international
standards for the championship. The take-off and landing areas are being
completely redone, and state-of-the-art facilities are being built for the
paragliders, officials and spectators alike.*
*About Airports Authority of India*
*The Airports Authority of India (AAI) is the Title Sponsors and will
actively promote the sport and the event through various avenues and
platforms to be announced soon. The AAI has also taken up the task of
promoting Adventure Sports and help build an additional avenue for Tourism.*
* About 130 of the best paragliders, including those in World's Top-5, from
over 40 countries are set to participate in the championship, which will
put India firmly on the global paragliding map.*
* During the week-long tournament, the edge of competitive sport during the
day will give way for some fun and frolic in the evenings, with
specially-themed programmes being planned for each evening. The gala
opening and the closing ceremonies promise to be extravaganzas, adding
their own colour to the World Cup.*
PFA the pictures.
Photograph 1: Lighting of the lamp at the opening ceremony of the AAI
Paragliding World Cup
(from L to R: Mr Rajesh Srivastava, Senior Vice President- Billing
Paragliding Association; Mr R K Srivastava, Chairman- Airports Authority of
India; Mr Sudhir Sharma, President- Billing Paragliding Association; Sh.
Pusapati Ashok Gajapathi Raju - Union Minister of Civil Aviation)
Photograph 2 and 3: Flag off ceremony of the AAI Paragliding World Cup by
the Union Minister of Civil Aviation- Sh. Pusapati Ashok Gajapathi Raju
Photograph 4: Para-gliders taking off during the Official Practice day of
the AAIParagliding World Cup.
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