The competition took place from September 9 to 14 and attracted 38 pilots from 16 countries.

In only her fourth competition, Nicola won her first flight and maintained the lead for the duration of the event.

The future is looking bright for the 29-year-old, who has only recently begun her competition ballooning career.

“The most exciting thing is that the world championships was only my fourth-ever ballooning competition,” she said.

“I spoke to one pilot who told me that it was her ninth competition for the season.

“I still have so much to learn and a lot of improving to do and I think that can only be a good thing for my future in competition ballooning.”

A mum to 14-month-old Hugo, Nicola fulfils her love of flying in her job as a pilot for Balloon Aloft Australia (her husband Matthew’s family business).

As winner of the women’s event, Nicola earned an automatic entry to the next open world championships that will take place in Saga, Japan in 2016 where she will compete alongside Matthew, who won the Australian hot air balloon championships earlier this year.

The Saga World Championships are expected to draw hundreds of thousands of spectators.

While the first ballooning world championships took place 41 years ago, this was the first women’s world championship.

Men were able to be part of a team on the ground, but only females were allowed in the balloon basket.

 “At competitions it is usually the women who are looking after children or supporting their husbands and last week it was brilliant to see the roles reversed and some amazing female talent in the skies,” Nicola said.

“To have a world championships for women is a fantastic thing for us and the international ballooning community.”

A hot air balloon competition requires competitors to score points by undertaking a number of set tasks, which are predetermined by an event director before a flight.

This generally involves the pilot throwing a ‘marker’, a weighted streamer, at a target, usually a cross or road intersection with set coordinates. Points are accumulated throughout the week.

It’s not just about the pilot – it’s a whole team sport, Nicola says.

“The people on the ground who are helping with wind information and the logistics of each flight are so important. My team was focused and absolutely amazing,” she said.

Along with attending the Saga World Championships in 2016, Nicola also hopes to defend her women’s world title in Lithuania that year.