History

All developments in heavier-than-air flight between 1853 (Sir George Cayley's coachman), and 1903 (Wright brothers) involved gliders. However, the sport of gliding only emerged after the First World War and the reason for its development can be traced to the Treaty of Versailles. The peace settlement imposed severe restrictions on the manufacture and use of single-seater powered aeroplanes in Germany.

Thus, in the 1920s and 1930s, whilst aviators and aircraft makers in the rest of the world were working to improve the performance of powered aeroplanes, the Germans were designing, developing and flying ever more efficient gliders and discovering ways of using the natural forces in the atmosphere to make them fly further and faster.

The first German gliding competition was held at the Wasserkuppe in 1920, organised by Oskar Ursinus, and ten years later had become an international event. The sport has since been taken up in many countries. It does not matter whether the countries are flat or mountainous, hot or temperate, as gliders can soar in most places. Germany, however, remains the world centre of gliding, as evinced by the fact that all the major glider manufacturers are still based there.