50% on the cameraman's score. The first Skysurf World Championship was held in Efes, Turkey on 13–21 September 1997 by the International Parachuting Committee. Competitive team skysurfing was featured as part of the ESPN X Games from 1995 to 2000. In 1996 and 1997, the SSI Pro Tour staged eight X-Trials qualifying events in both North America and Europe. During this six-year period, pro skysurf teams received a total of $392,000 in cash winnings and the discipline garnered over 100 hours of global TV exposure without incident. In 2000 ABC's Wide World of Sports chose Skysurfing from the X-Games to cover due to its attractive television format. Training Training programmes were established to ensure the safe progression of the sport. With the growth in participants and interest to progress safely the British Parachute Association rules were adopted as part of the Operations Manual and guidelines for achieving SS1 & SS2 recognition of their skills. Loftis developed an instructional programme with skysurf schools run by a number of competitive sky surfers. A number of coaching programmes remain, with expert advice and coaching considered mandatory by drop zone owners and chief instructors to mitigate risk. Records and firsts As with a new any new sport a number of firsts and records were established, featured in the media and a number recognised by Record Breakers and Guinness World Records. These included the highest altitude exit, surfing in a thunder storm, extreme ironing, most number of spins, surfing above active volcanos and longest distance travelled on a 'sky-glider'. Notable skysurfers Patrick de Gayardon Troy Hartman Valery Rozov Rob Harris Notable camera flyers Olav Zipser References Boardsports Acrobatic sports Parachuting