Team USA 8-way receives their gold medal after winning the 8-way Formation Skydiving category of the FAI World Championships ceremony on 11 October 2024. (Megan Hackett/U.S. Army)

Soldiers from the United States Army Parachute Team conquered the skies and won gold medals Friday at the World Skydiving Championships in Beaufort, N.C., as part of the Team USA 8-Way competition team.

Composed of soldiers and civilian skydivers, Team USA competed in multiple disciplines from Oct. 5-11 at Crystal Coast Skydiving in Beaufort. They faced teams from Qatar, Germany, Brazil and Great Britain.

Sgt. 1st Class Jeshua Stahler, Sgt. 1st Class Michael Connors and Sgt. 1st Class Mitch Stockenberg, soldiers from the USAPT, known as the Golden Knights, were part of the championship team.

“This has been a goal of mine for several years,” Connors said in a news release. “It is extremely rewarding to realize that dream with my team and see all of our hard work pay off. It has been an absolute honor being able to represent and win for the United States on the world stage, and I am incredibly thankful for the opportunity as well as the mentorship from my teammates.”

Team USA 8-way poses ahead of their competition skydive at the FAI World Championships on 8 October 2024. (Megan Hackett/U.S. Army)

Sgt. 1st Class Jeshua Stahler of the U.S. Army Parachute Team prepares to board the airplane prior to skydiving at the FAI World Championships on 8 October 2024. (Megan Hackett/U.S. Army)

Sgt. 1st Class Michael Connors, Sgt. 1st Class Mitch Stockenberg, and Sgt. 1st Class Jeshua Stahler of the U.S. Army Parachute Team pose after skydiving at the FAI World Championships on 8 October 2024. (Megan Hackett/U.S. Army)

Team USA maintained a strong lead in all 10 rounds of the competition, scoring 239 points and the highest average score of 23.9 points per round. They also earned the 8-way Longest Sequence, with 37 formations completed. The previous record, set by the Golden Knights’ 8-way Team in 2015, was 33 formations completed.

“It’s been a very proud and rewarding experience to compete again alongside my former teammates, and to see the Golden Knights return to the pinnacle of formation skydiving on the world stage,” said Andrew Starr, a former member of the Golden Knights, who was one of the veterans competing for Team USA.

In 2023, the Golden Knights won the U.S. Skydiving Nationals, earning them a spot on Team USA for the world skydiving championship event.

“It’s an honor to be wearing red, white and blue and to see all of the competitors doing so well in their events,” Stahler said.

Golden Knights soldiers will begin training for their next competition in 2025 at the Windoor Wind Games, a three-day indoor skydiving competition in Empuriabrava, Spain beginning on Jan. 30.

“I couldn’t be more proud to be an alumni than I am today and I could not be more excited to see what the future holds for the Army Parachute Team and their competitive parachutists,” Starr said.

Sgt. 1st Class Michael Connors of the U.S. Army Parachute Team lands his parachute after skydiving at the FAI World Championships on 8 October 2024. (Megan Hackett/U.S. Army)

Sgt. 1st Class Jeshua Stahler of the U.S. Army Parachute Team lands his parachute after skydiving at the FAI World Championships on 8 October 2024. (Megan Hackett/U.S. Army)