Whoop! Whoop! The second leg of the Swoop Freestyle FAI World Championships 2018 has touched down in San Diego - bringing with it 18 of the world's best skydiving professionals.

Claudio Cagnasso of Venezuela is in the top spot after yesterday's Training Session, followed by Pablo Hernandez of Spain and American skydiving star Jeannie Bartholomew.

Fellow American Travis Mills, who won the first leg of the competition in Copenhagen last month, also put in a good performance to finish in fifth place.

"I've been doing this for a long time and I´ve trained hard for this, so I believe in myself," he said. "There´s no other way to go but up, right? It can only get better!”

So it's all to play for in the Qualifying Rounds and Finals tomorrow! 

about the event

Taking place above and across the iconic Port of San Diego at Embarcadero Marina Park, the second and decisive part of this year's Swoop Freestyle FAI World Championships will involve plenty of air, land and water-based entertainment, including Wingsuiting, Acro Paragliding, culinary experiences, live musical acts and much, much more.

Saturday´s grand finale will culminate with an Award Ceremony at which the 2018 Champion will be crowned and spectators will enjoy a demonstration from the US Navy Parachute Team, the Leap Frogs.

SWOOP FREESTYLE EXPLAINED

Swoop Freestyle is a young, exhilarating air sport that involves competitors flying – or swooping – at high speeds across a body of water at the end of a jump. Also known as canopy piloting, participants are judged on both style and execution.

For these championships, the athletes will jump out of a helicopter at an altitude of 1500m before performing a series of turns designed to build up speed at 600m above the landing area.

It is this speed, which can be up to 150km per hour, which allows them to propel themselves across the surface of the water while executing highly technical freestyle moves.

Photo credits: Swoop Freestyle FAI World Championships