By Miles Gore-Brown
The selection process for Australian national teams has not changed much over the years, however some minor amendments have been made because of the challenges during COVID and, more important, the need to provide teams with plenty of time for training, securing gliders and booking travel and accommodation.
Changes to the selection cycle have been made so that the teams are selected at least 18 months before the beginning of the World Championships. This policy recommendation was presented to the SDP in 2024 and adopted at the start of the 2024/25 competition cycle. This has been applied for selection of the 2026 WGC teams for Poland and Junior WGC in Germany. Selection policy is detailed in International Team Selection Policy Doc SD030.
The selection cycle runs from August through to end of February each year. This period accommodates Nationals Championships held in Queensland early in the season, and those Nationals held early in the year at the end of the season i.e. Waikerie and Tocumwal. If February is not the month of the last national championship, then flexibility is allowed and the last month for selection will be the month in which the last Australian national championship for that season is held.
The World Gliding Championships (WGC) are held in two separate groups of classes, ‘big wings’ 18m, Open and 20m classes at one event and Club, Standard and 15m classes at another separate event. Junior and Women’s WGCs are also held at separate sites. The two separate groups of championships are held on alternative years, which means the selection process for each of the two WGC’s is separate and complete by the end of two separate selection cycles.
Selection for the big wings in 2026 WGC is now complete. This year’s soaring season, August 2025 until end of February 2026, is the final 60% selection for Club, Standard and 15m classes. The results from the Kingaroy and Leeton Nationals will be used for the final team selection across these three classes.
Junior WGCs are held in the year of for the big wing WGC and Women’s in the year of Club Class WGC – in other words, Women’s WGC in 2025 and Junior WGC in 2026.
Pilots are ranked based on their individual prescriptive total scores across two selection cycles. The total score is the sum of the 40% and the 60% specific class qualifying score. The 40% selection scores are taken from the results in any class, not class specific, at Australian National Championships held within the selection cycle. The final 60% selection scores are taken from the class specific results and is the class the pilot, if selected, will fly in the WGCs.
The pilot scores from the best competition across the 40% and 60% scores are combined to establish the Master Ranking list for all pilots in that selection cycle. Refer to Figure 1 for Master Ranking at the end of 2024/25 season. This Master Ranking list is the list of all pilots combined across the classes and only in special circumstances is it used during the selection process.
Pilots who fly in more than one qualifying championship must advise SDP of the competitions to be used for selection. The 40% score is from any Australian national championship in the first year of the selection cycle and the 60% score from the national championship in the last year of the selection cycle. Overseas competition results may be used if approved by the SDP for the 40% score.
Final team selection for each class is determined in descending order of the total scores across the 40% and 60% results from the class ranking list. For each class, the selection process continues down the class ranking list until the WGC team positions are full.
If the class was not filled before reaching the class eighty percentile (80%) score, then the Master Ranking list, refer to Figure 1, will be referenced in descending order, to select pilots from the next in line to fill the applicable vacant team position. This was the process used for selecting the last Open Class pilot for 2026 WGC.
The 2025 through 2026 World Gliding Championship teams were selected as follows:
2025 WGC Czech Republic
Club – James Nugent, Daniel Summers
15m – Matthew Scutter, David Jansen
Std – Adam Wooley, Allan Barnes
Team Captain – Sophie Curio
Women’s – Sophie Curio – 18m
Team selection for this round of WGC was via a subjective selection decision of the SDP due to the lack of available National championships for the previous selection cycle.
2026 WGC Poland and Germany:
The WGC in Poland for big wings and Germany for Juniors will consist of Open,18m and 20m class.
This selection cycle was complete at the end of the 2025 at the Open,18m and 20m class National Championships.
The selection process used the Class Specific Ranking lists in addition to the Master Ranking List to select the Open Class second pilot.
Substituted Uvalde WGC competition results were used for the final 20m class selection.
The final teams selected for the 2026 WGCs:
18m Class – Lumpy Patersen and Norm Bloch
Open Class – Allan Barnes and David Jansen
20m Class – Adam Woolley/Keith Gately
Team Captain – Phil Richie
Junior Team – Tom Jamiesen and Anoushka De Chelard
Team Captain – Mandy Temple
The Master Ranking list established from the best of all competition scores for 2024/2025 selection cycles is shown in Figure 1.
Current team selection cycle:
2027 WGC Italy / Slovenia - 15m, Standard, Club Class / Women’s
These two WGCs are at mountain sites and as such, selection will need to consider pilot experience.
The 40% selection scores are established from the Temora and Lake Keepit Nationals and by application, a recognised international CAT 1 competition
Note: CAT 1 competition in 40%-year Aug 24 – Aug 25 if requested – no applications received at the time of writing this report.
It is important to note that in the 2024/25 competition cycle there was NO valid competition for Standard or 15m Class.
Substitution will be available for approved international championships flown in the 2024/25 period from 24 to 25 August. Pilots must advise ITM if this option is to be used for the 40% score for the 2025/26 final selection.
The class specific competition for Club Class will be at Kingaroy and Leeton for the Standard and 15m Classes, providing the 60% selection score for 15m, Standard and Club Class teams.
2028 WGC – 18m, Open Class, 20m and Juniors
The 2026 Leeton and the Kingaroy Nationals will provide the 40% selection score.
The qualifying class specific competition for the 60% selection score will be from the big wing National Championships held in the soaring season August 2026 through to the end of February 2027.
The sites for these WGC events have not been finalised except for the Juniors held at Lake Keepit.
Team Funding
Team funding is supplied from resources held in the Soaring Development Fund. This fund is managed in accordance with the policy described in SDF Policy Doc SDP002, available online in the Gliding Australia Documents section.
The fund had a total balance as of March 2025 of $511,512. This amount is supplemented by income from competition levies – Nationals and State Championships and investment income earned from invested funds. Competition levies for the season August 2025 thru February 2026 are for Nationals $83 per pilot, 50% discount for juniors and for State championships $30 per pilot.
Funding for team members, including Team Captain, is detailed in SDP002 essentially with funding for two pilots per team, and one team captain. Open Class is no longer funded but funding has been increased for the Women’s team with two pilots, and a Team Captain is now funded.
Team funding for the 2026 WGCs is $5,630 for each pilot and $4,220 for each Team Captain.
Congratulations to those pilots already selected and good luck at the Kingaroy and Leeton Nationals for to those in contention for the next round of WGC selection.
Happy safe soaring
