Closing ceremony
A bit late, and very long - every person involved in the comp was given a tankard - and the closing ceremony is over.
The atmosphere was very informal, no march past or such, but it was good fun.
The British team with team bronze, and the PF1 class was so close that we were only a handful of points off more medals - a great performance.
The (potential) world record holders were celebrated and given a clock - Dave Hairs is a record-holder in waiting following his 110km flight in the distance task.
At times the ceremony was very emotional. Carlos’ brother attended and he stood on the podium along with the Spanish team as they collected a silver in PL1, Carlos’ class. We held a minute’s silence and watched a montage of Carlos in action at the championships. This competition may well be remembered for the tragic accident, at the same time good memories of an excellent sporting event will be treasured. During one speech Carlos was mentioned and his name added to the list of aviators who have died while experiencing flight.
As the inscription next to Carlos’ picture says, the best way to honour a life is to live a life. We turn our eyes to Beijing in 2007 (I have my invite already) and to another great competition. See you there…