TASS athlete spotlight: John Welsh

Although formation skydiving can be done recreationally, a typical competitive season includes four competitions, three of which form the UK Skydiving League (UKSLs) and the National Championships. Nationals usually take place in August/September, annually.

UKSL competitions are held monthly across the UK from May through July, providing invaluable competition experience for entrants. Some teams opt for entry in the Nationals alone, however, an award at the Skydiving AGM is an incentive to partake in the UKSLs as well. This is awarded to the team who have gained the most points in their finishing positions in the UKSLs and the Nationals.

 John is supported by Leeds Beckett’s Carnegie School of Sport and the university’s Sport and Active Lifestyle hub, via the Talent Athlete Scholarship Scheme programme (TASS). TASS is a partnership between athletes, educational institutions and the national governing bodies of sport, funded by Sport England.

As an athlete in the TASS Programme employed in the army, John has been granted flexibility for training by his chain of command, including weekdays. The average training week for John sees him utilising TASS services biweekly, with two weekdays off each month to train with his coaches in Belgium.

John has competed in National and UKSL competitions from 2015 – 2019, working up the ranks from Rookie Silver, to Single A Gold, to AA Silver. He’s also taken part in some indoor national competitions, including the 2021 Indoor Skydiving World Cup in Belgium. In 2022, John competed in Nationals as a substitute member of the Army team, ‘Voltage’.

“I’d like to win the British National in the highest category (AAA), and after I would like to compete in further World Cups and World Championships,” John explains. “This is by no means guaranteed, but if the planets align, I might be able to get onto a professional team.”

Increasing recognition for formation skydiving

John observes that formation skydiving is a relatively ‘insular’ sport which is contributing to limited media coverage, leaving the general public unaware of ongoing competitions. “Most teams are amateurs who fund their own training. For the semi-pro and pro teams, the only real sponsorship is from skydiving gear manufacturers, rather than significant outside funding.”

“Without this media attention there is no interest, no viewership, and no chance of it becoming a truly professional sport. This would enable athletes to compete full time, as there would be money in it."

Although John believes formation skydiving doesn’t get enough attention, he appreciates how it faces challenges in being a spectator sport. “It takes years of training to become proficient, and I think it’s similar to Formula 1 in that it’s hard for people to relate to, and to understand how difficult it is,” John explains. “What some of the top teams are able to do, the speed they can fly at and the scores they achieve, it is mind blowing.

“There needs to be some development on the outdoor side of things. The best we can do right now is have a slightly delayed stream of the judged footage with commentators over the top. There would be delays as judges swap over, aircrafts are refuelled or there is a weather hold.”

“While livestreamed indoor competitions have made it much easier for people to access and observe, people still wouldn’t have much idea as to the formations or the complexity of the moves.

“I think there is work to be done on our part to make it more accessible and easier to understand,” John says, suggesting the use of graphics which demonstrate what each formation should look like. “Once people understand what they’re looking at, they would appreciate and enjoy watching it a lot more.”

Competition categories and formation difficulty

The four competition categories include: Rookie, A (Single A), AA (Double A), and AAA (Triple A).

‘Randoms’ are single formations which are carried out before moving on to another, whereas ‘Blocks’ are more complex; they consist of two formations linked by particular moves known as ‘inters’. Blocks include individual 360 turns or multiple teammates moving together in attachment (known as a piece, and the people involved as piece partners).

The four competition categories include the following formations:

• Rookie – Randoms
• A – Some added blocks
• AA – More blocks are added (including higher difficulty ones)
• AAA – final blocks added, moves known as ‘slot switchers’ (finishing a move in a different slot to the one you started in)

Training schedule

The wind tunnel is predominantly used for training, although John insists that outdoor practice is vital in learning how to exit the aircraft appropriately. Being indoors does not allow for practicing ‘sub-terminal moves’ (the section after leaving the aircraft which you are still accelerating, also known as ‘being on the hill’).

However, benefits of the wind tunnel include increased time and calmer conditions to perfect flying and execute formation moves, as opposed to also deploying a parachute. Freefall time in an outdoor environment is around 60 seconds, compared to a wind tunnel flight of 1 minute 40 seconds, which are carried out in 15-minute blocks. This means indoor tunnel training is both more time efficient and cheaper than its outdoor counterpart.

Training involves some 1-1 work too, building upon individual flying skills, formations and block moves. Working on different combinations of blocks and randoms reinforces strong muscle memory required for performing them at speed, while pace work helps John get familiar with flying faster than his current personal best.

“My coach is highly knowledgeable on how to execute these moves correctly, and so will make corrections during sessions and debrief afterwards,” he explains. “For randoms, this may be I need to change the angle or my positioning to make them more efficient, and therefore faster.”

John continues, “They also provide advice on the mental side of things. When the speed is pushed it can be hard to keep up and sometimes you forget the next formation. This brain lock disrupts the flow and rhythm, and can lose you a lot of points.”