The 12th FAI World Sailplane Grand Prix Final: A Week of Drama, Tactics, and Triumph in the Skies of St-Auban
Saint-Auban, France – 04 September 2025
Seis Claims Second World Title in One of Gliding’s Most Thrilling Finishes
M.Seis - post race interview after his last day win
The 12th FAI World Sailplane Grand Prix Final delivered a finale that will be remembered as one of the most electrifying in the history of competitive gliding. As the sun dipped behind the rugged peaks of the French Alps on Saturday, 30 August, the skies above St-Auban bore witness to a climax so tense, so unforgiving, that it left spectators and competitors alike breathless. After six days of relentless competition, Maximilian Seis of France crossed the finish line just seven seconds ahead of his nearest rival, securing his second World Champion title in a race that came down to the wire. The victory, achieved exactly a decade after his first world title, was a masterclass in precision, patience, and tactics.
The final race was a microcosm of the week: unpredictable, tactical, and brutally competitive. With seven pilots still mathematically in contention for the crown, the pressure was palpable. Every thermal, every turnpoint, every strategic gamble carried the weight of a championship. Seis, a pilot renowned for his calm under pressure, navigated the final leg with the composure of a seasoned champion. Behind him, Kévin Faur, flying in only his second World Championship event, pushed to the absolute limit, nearly snatching victory in a heart-stopping sprint to the line. In the end, it was Seis’s experience - and a mere handful of seconds - that made the difference.
“It's a very different scenario than ten years ago. Ten years ago, it came as quite a surprise. This year, I was obviously hoping for it, I knew it was possible, but in the end, it was very, very marginal and tight”, Seis admitted in the post-race interview, his voice still tinged with the adrenaline of the moment. For him, the Final Day had to be perfect - and it was.
A Championship Defined by Unpredictability
Race winner C.Abadie on a live interview
From the opening race, the 12th FAI SGP Final defied expectations. The field, packed with some of the most decorated names in gliding, produced five different race winners across six races, a testament to the depth of talent and the mercurial nature of alpine conditions. The competition was so fierce that even the slightest miscalculation could - and often did - cost pilots dearly. Race leaders were overtaken in the blink of an eye, their hard-earned advantages erased by a single misjudged thermal or an ill-timed detour.
Christophe Abadie, the 2018 18m World Champion, embodied the drama of the week. After a slow start that left him languishing in the middle of the pack, Abadie staged a stunning comeback, claiming back-to-back victories in Races 3 and 4. His performance in Race 3 was particularly memorable: trapped in a struggling gaggle of pilots, he broke away to find a powerful 3 m/s thermal while others scrambled in weaker lift. It was like a game of chess. “You have to anticipate, I try to stay higher than the pack”. Christophe often made the right move at the right time when the thermals were weakening. His resurgence earned him a silver medal and a place on the podium, but it was his tactical brilliance that will be remembered as one of the defining stories of the championship.
Joining Seis and Abadie on the podium was Kévin Faur, the 26-year-old French prodigy who had never before competed in a Grand Prix Final. Faur’s third-place finish was nothing short of sensational, a bold statement from a pilot who refused to be intimidated by the sport’s elite. Kévin emerged as a serious contender after his spectacular win in Race 2 with a 7-minute lead! “Max was better at the end of the race. In Grand Prix racing, you always have to be at 150% but I lost the lead before the last turnpoint”, he said, “but I have no regrets, I enjoyed it a lot, I am very happy with the results.” His near-miss in the final race - finishing just seven seconds behind Seis - only underscored his potential as a future dominant force in the sport.
The Veterans and the Rising Stars: A Clash of Generations
Podium and Pilots of the 12th FAI SGP Final
The 12th FAI SGP Final was more than a championship, it was a showdown between experience and ambition, where the sport’s most decorated names faced off against a fearless new wave of talent. The event became a battleground not just for the title, but for the future direction of competitive gliding itself.
K.Faur, E.Borgmann, M.Kiessling, S.Göttler
For Mario Kiessling and Erik Borgmann, two pilots who had competed in the very first SGP World Final back in 2005, the stakes could not have been higher. Entering the final day, both remained in contention for the world title, their decades of experience poised against the hunger of younger rivals. Kiessling, a tactician known for his consistancy in SGP, and Borgmann, a master of reading alpine conditions - he flies in Vinon -, had spent years refining their craft, each chasing that elusive first world crown. Yet, in the end, the championship slipped just out of reach - Kiessling finishing 6th and Borgmann 5th - leaving them to ponder what might have been in a week where margins were measured in seconds and fortunes turned on a single thermal.
Then there was Didier Hauss, the 2014 SGP World Champion and a legend of mountain flying. A fan favorite for his audacious style and deep knowledge of alpine winds, Hauss entered the Final with high expectations. But St-Auban proved unforgiving. His signature boldness - exemplified by a high-risk climb at Blayeul in Race 3 - backfired when the thermal collapsed, leaving him stranded and ultimately finishing 16th overall. His struggle was a stark reminder that in gliding, even the greatest can be humbled by the elements.
Meanwhile, Stefan Langer, the reigning World Number One and a true champion of the sport, faced the immense challenge posed by an exceptionally strong field at this year’s Finals. Despite his outstanding skill and consistent performance throughout the season, the final standings placed him ninth - a testament to the extraordinary depth of talent and intensity of competition at this level. Stefan’s sportsmanship and resilience were on full display, contributing to the excitement and prestige of the event. His dedication and passion continue to inspire both his fellow competitors and the next generation of pilots, proving that every race is a chance to learn, adapt, and grow.
Against this backdrop of veteran resilience and occasional heartbreak, the new generation seized their moment. Pilots like Kévin Faur and Peter Millenaar refused to be intimidated, turning the championship into a statement of intent. Millenaar, who led the standings after three races, ultimately finished fourth - just two points off the podium - a near-miss that only underscored his potential. His performance, along with Faur’s bronze medal heroics, sent a clear message: the guard is changing. The old masters still command respect, but the future belongs to those bold enough to challenge them. The clash of generations had begun, and St-Auban was only the first skirmish.
St-Auban: The Perfect Stage for High-Stakes Drama
If the pilots were the stars of the show, then St-Auban was the perfect theater. The venue, nestled in the heart of the French Alps, offered a breathtaking but brutal testing ground. The terrain, a mix of towering peaks and vast plateaus, demanded versatility and adaptability. Pilots had to transition seamlessly from ridge-soaring to thermal hunting, from high-speed glides to delicate climbs in turbulent air. The “Parcours du Combattant”, a notorious stretch of the course, became a hotspot where races were won and lost.
The FAI Sailplane Grand Prix Media Team captured every twist and turn, delivering live commentary and stunning 3D visualizations that brought the action to life for fans around the world - including a first-ever livestream broadcast in China, expanding the event’s global reach. The coverage was more than just a broadcast; it was an education in the art of gliding, with expert analysts breaking down the pilots’ decisions in real time. “We wanted to give viewers a sense of what it’s like to be in the cockpit,” said one of the commentators. “Every choice matters, and sometimes, the difference between victory and defeat is just a single decision.”
Social media buzzed with highlights and ‘reels’, as fans dissected each race with great enthusiasm. The event trended globally, with pilots and spectators sharing their experiences, frustrations, and triumphs. For a sport often perceived as niche, the engagement was a testament to the drama unfolding in the skies, with a 40% increase in traffic, views, and engagement - across websites, social media, and livestreams - compared to the previous World Final.
The Race That Had It All: A Breakdown of the Finale
A neck-and-neck final glide between K. Faur and M. Seis
The sixth and final race was a masterpiece of tension and skill. With the championship on the line, the top pilots left nothing to chance. Milenaar, Abadie, Borgmann, Seis, and Faur entered the day separated by just a handful of points, knowing that a single mistake could hand the title to a rival.
The task, a 291 km course that snaked through the Alps, was designed to test every facet of a pilot’s ability. From the start, the field split into distinct groups, each gambling on different routes and thermals. Seis and Faur flew a conservative line after Manosque, hugging the ridges and minimizing risk, while others, like Erik Borgmann, Mario Kiessling and Stefan Langer took bolder routes in search of stronger lift.
As the race progressed, the tension mounted. By the final turnpoint, Seis and Faur had broken away from the pack, locked in a duel that would decide the championship. The two Frenchmen pushed their gliders to the limit, trading the lead in a high-speed chase that kept spectators on the edge of their seats. In the end, it was Seis who found the best lines of energy to secure a final glide that Faur couldn’t match. The margin - seven seconds - was the slimmest possible to decide a World Title, a fitting end to a week of razor-thin margins.
“When you’re racing at this level, every second counts”, Faur said afterward. “Today, Max was just better.”
What’s Next for the Sailplane Grand Prix?
As the SGP Team and competitors left St-Auban, the gliding world was already looking ahead. The 2025 Final was a reminder of why the Sailplane Grand Prix is one of the most exciting formats in aviation sports: it’s unpredictable, it’s tactical, and it’s relentlessly competitive. With a new generation of pilots rising through the ranks and the veterans still hungry for success, the stage is set for even more drama in the years to come.
For Maximilian Seis, the victory is a validation of a decade of hard work and dedication. For Kévin Faur and the other young stars, it’s a glimpse of the future. And for the fans, it’s a promise of more thrills, more heart-stopping finishes, and more stories of triumph and heartbreak in the skies.
The 13th SGP Series is already on the horizon, with its venues set to be announced in late October 2025, promising another season of high-stakes competition across some of the world’s most spectacular flying sites. The excitement won’t end there: the next SGP World Final will take place in Vitacura, Chile, in January 2028, marking a return of the SGP Finals in South America - a thrilling new chapter for the sport.
Final Standings - World Final Serie 12
Watch the Highlights of the Final Race (Day 7 - Race 6)
The Last Word
The 12th FAI World Sailplane Grand Prix Final was more than just a competition; it was a celebration of skill, strategy, and the sheer joy of flight. In the end, it was Maximilian Seis who stood atop the podium, but the real winner was the sport itself - a sport that continues to captivate and inspire, one thermal at a time.
