Aiming for the Top

The air-conditioned café wasn’t just welcome, it felt like a necessary refuge from the 40°C (104°F) midday heat of the streets of Jaén, Spain. With the 2025/2026 Paragliding World Cup Superfinal entering its final days, a rest day allowed time to talk with three of the top US competition pilots – who also happen to be women.

Alexia Fischer, 39, arrived first for our lunchtime rendezvous. Alexia had the podium in sight, but with two tasks still to go the fight for the top spot was still on. “Competition flying is a great way to see the world,” she said, as we ordered. “It takes you to places you wouldn’t normally go.” 

Alexia grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico and wanted to fly, “since I was a kid”. She and her family would often go up to nearby Sandia Peak, which has been a popular hang gliding and paragliding site since the 1980s. “I watched and was like ‘I wanna do that!’” she laughed.

It wasn’t until late 2018, however, after seeing...