More than 100 of the world’s best drone racing pilots will be competing in Xiangshan Ningbo, China this week, giving it their all to claim a place on the podiums at the medal ceremonies on Dec. 14.
Among those hoping to make their mark are Junior pilots Minchan Kim of the Republic of Korea, who claimed the top spot at the recent FAI World Drone Masters in Jeonju, Korea, and FAI Drone Racing World Cup 2018 winner Killian Rousseau of France.
Latvia’s Tomass Petersons, who leads the FAI Drone Racing World Cup 2019 rankings at this stage, is also expected to put in a strong performance, as is last year’s Junior Champion – competing as a Senior this year – Oscar Nilsson from Sweden.
And among the Women, the 2018 champion Wanraya Wannapong from Thailand remains the one to beat – despite being one of the youngest pilots in the competition.
Bruno Delor, WDRC2019 Jury President, said: “We are expecting a very high level at this year’s Grand Final, in which many of the pilots taking part are Juniors.”
About the competition
The 2019 FAI World Drone Racing Championship Grand Final will be held at a dedicated drone-racing track, built especially for the competition in Xiangshan Ningbo, a coastal city in the south east of China about 300km from Shanghai.
The competition will take place over four days:
- 11 December: Model processing and practice flights
- 12 December: Opening ceremony and qualifying rounds
- 13 December: Elimination rounds
- 14 December: Elimination rounds, finals, medal and closing ceremonies
The three-level track the pilots will be flying is 4m wide and 6m high, and has a total length of 630m.
Called Bi-Fish, it is inspired by the traditional Chinese Tai Chi symbol, and the maritime culture of Xiangshan, Ningbo – a former fishing village – and includes lots of sharp turns, 16 air gates, and a tunnel.
About the participants
Among the 112 participating pilots, 103 drone pilots, including 40 juniors and nine women, will compete as part of 31 national teams.
They will be joined by six pilots from four different countries who are participating as individual competitors having qualified due to their 2019 FAI Drone Racing World Cup rankings, plus three pilots who have been given wild card entries by the host country, China.
The qualification routes for all competitors not taking part via a wild card are:
- Ranking in the top 16 of the 2019 FAI Drone Racing World Cup (17 pilots have qualified this way this year as two pilots were ranked 16th and so have both been given a place)
- Finishing in the top three at the Jeonju Masters in the Republic of Korea in early November
- Winning a Challenger Series event
