Andreas Häger is aiming for a World Cup victory after a strong SM win

Andreas Häger is 39 years old and lives in Sveg. He competes for Åre paragliding club and is one of around ten Swedish pilots who regularly compete at a high level. And even though he made his competitive debut just over two years ago, he has already managed to win the SM and qualify for the World Cup. He was also both a participant and team leader in the national team that represented Sweden in the team EC in North Macedonia earlier this year. Something he considered to be a bit tough.

- There are a lot of competition days with high pressure, and also being a team leader on that becomes quite exhausting, he explains.

Aim high

In his first World Cup competition, Andreas Häger flew in eighth place in one of the sub-competitions, among 106 participants. After six days of competition, he then finished in 45th place overall, a result he himself feels satisfied with.

Andrea's immediate goal going forward is to succeed in winning a sub-competition.

- I would have liked to have won a task at the World Cup, after that I don't know. I focus on what is closest and take one step at a time, he says.

In cross country (XC) it is important to fly a course as quickly and efficiently as possible. The race tracks are often between five and ten miles long and a task can take around three hours. World Cup competitions last seven days, while championships such as the WC and EC can span two weeks.

Safe training is essential

Paragliding at competition level places great demands on the pilots' routine. Anders Häger flies over 300 hours per year and stresses the importance of regular safety training.

- You have to actively train all the time, not just fly around, says Andreas Häger.

Hear more about the venture and see Andreas at his training in Lofsdalen in the clip.