The youngest pilots on the Belgian team - Lucas DEMUYSERE and Aleksey VANPUTTE

The youngest Belgian participants in the championships are Lucas Demuysere (20 years old) and Aleksey Vanputte (19 years old), both members of the youth club "De Krab." Both of them compete in a land yachting class for which they don't yet have much competition experience. The challenge is significant for both of them.

Lucas has been a Standard class sailor for several years. However, this year, he is participating in a European championship for the first time, in Class 2, with sail number B6. The land yachts in this class are the largest on the beach and require experience. Is Class 2 sailing an inherited art? Henri Demuysere, Lucas's father, is the all-time greatest medalist in Class 2. This year, Henri and Lucas are competing against each other. We fear that "experience" might prevail over "youth" for Lucas, but he will certainly gain valuable experience this year nonetheless.

Aleksey is the president of "De Krab" and a passionate land yachter. He already has an impressive track record in the PROMO class of land yachting in France.

To enable Aleksey to participate in the championship, RSYC is temporarily lending him a Standard class land yacht. However, it will be a significant challenge for Aleksey (sail number S762) to stand out in the Standard class, which has 52 participants this year, including Fabrice Chagnon (S726) and Graeme David Grant (S361), the champion and vice-champion in 2022, respectively. EURO23 DE PANNE is also a stepping stone for Aleksey towards the World Championship, which will be held in Asnelles, France, next year.