The French are in a great position this morning, with all four pilots in the top nine. Rookie Maxime Pinot (FRA4) is there, every step of the way, with leader Christian Maurer (SUI1), while Antoine Girard (FRA3), who has the paragliding world altitude record (he flew to over 8000m in the Himalayas), will likely thrive among the big peaks. Girard is pictured here by Harald Tauderer.