USPA Highlights 2025’s Biggest Skydiving Moments: Records, Milestones, and a Global Jump Day
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. (Dec. 16, 2025) — The United States Parachute Association (USPA) is closing out 2025 by spotlighting a year filled with standout moments in skydiving — from major world records and competition wins to a global celebration that logged tens of thousands of jumps in a single day.
USPA Executive Director Albert Berchtold called 2025 one of the most impressive years the sport has seen recently, pointing to record-breaking performances and growing participation at drop zones across the country.
World records and headline-making achievements
Among the year’s biggest highlights was a new canopy formation world record set at Jump Florida Skydiving. A group of 104 skydivers representing 20 countries exited seven aircraft, assembled in midair, and built a diamond formation — surpassing a record that had stood since 2007.
USPA also noted a major milestone in training and licensing: 4,088 people completed the requirements for the USPA A License, the first solo license that allows skydivers to jump without direct supervision and pack their own parachute.
1,000 jumps at age 86
One of the year’s most inspiring stories came from Kim Knor, who completed her 1,000th skydive at age 86 and earned USPA Gold Wings, an achievement reached by only a small number of jumpers. USPA said Knor’s skydiving career began in 1959 and has included jumps at more than 90 drop zones nationwide.
National Championships: the top competition in U.S. skydiving
Over 500 competitors took part in the 2025 USPA National Championships, hosted at Skydive Elsinore in Southern California and Skydive Arizona in Eloy. USPA described the event as the top competitive skydiving contest in the U.S., serving as a selection event for the teams that will represent the country internationally in 2026.
Disciplines ranged from canopy piloting and canopy formation to wingsuiting and artistic freefall events.
Guinness record: most tandem skydives in 24 hours
USPA also recognized a new Guinness world record set by husband-and-wife tandem team Sven Jseppi and Heather McLay, who completed 108 tandem jumps in 24 hours at Skydive OBX in North Carolina — breaking the previous record of 105 that had stood since 2011.
Massive head-down freefall record
Another major benchmark was set at Skydive Chicago, where 174 elite skydivers from more than 25 countries built a head-down formation in freefall — breaking the previous 164-person record from 2015. USPA said the group exited nine aircraft from 19,000 feet and had just 60 seconds to build the formation before separating for deployment.
Women’s wingsuit record and Red Bull “Starman Mission”
USPA highlighted a first for acrobatic wingsuit flying: an all-female U.S. team earned a world record at an FAI Wingsuit World Cup event in the Czech Republic by linking 12 controlled holds in freefall.
The association also pointed to an extreme wingsuit performance by Sebastian Alvarez Orellana, who set three wingsuit world records during what was called the “Red Bull Starman Mission,” including a reported top speed of 550 km/h (342 mph), distance of 53.45 km (33.22 miles), and a flight time of 11 minutes, 1 second.
World Skydiving Day: 26,718 jumps logged worldwide
On the second annual World Skydiving Day, USPA said 26,718 skydives were completed and officially reported around the world — bringing together first-time jumpers and experienced skydivers.
U.S. teams bring home medals
In international competition, USPA said U.S. athletes earned six gold, six silver, and four bronze medals, along with three world records, across multiple Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Cup disciplines.
About USPA
USPA is a nonprofit organization founded in 1946 that supports skydiving safety standards, training policies, and member drop zones nationwide. USPA reports more than 41,000 members, and estimates roughly 3.65 million jumps are made annually in the United States.
