World’s Best at the Military Games

WUHAN (CHN) - There is a relaxing atmosphere in the tent of the Belgian parachute team at the CISM Military World Summer Games in Wuhan. A number of the members are playing cards, one is doing a power nap in a hammock and another is consulting his laptop. No stress. Why should there be? Team Belgium a.k.a. ‘Hayabusa’ is the best team in the world and at this 7th edition of the CISM Military Games, they are also well on their way towards another gold medal. CISM Media had a chat with team member David Grauwels who was leisurely looking at the competition of the accuracy jumpers.

“We are only present here with a formation jump team because we pay too little attention to the other disciplines. A conscious choice we think. We prefer to focus on one discipline in which we are very strong rather than to divide our attention into three delivering only a mediocre performance,” David says. In the interim standings, Team Belgium currently leads the ranking, closely followed by Qatar. “We must remain alert and not let ourselves be lulled to sleep. In short, let’s not waste our chances here. If the competition evolves like this, it is indeed looking good for us," says the Belgian parachutist.

What is the secret being the best in the world?

“In my opinion, it’s because we have all experienced the evolution of our team from the very beginning. We started at the grassroots level. When we enlisted in the army, our skills only increased. And in recent years we have been able to gain the experience that we now really need to be top-notch. That way we won't let our opponents take us by surprise anymore like we used to in the early days. As a result, we experience less stress. Together as a team we have been through a lot. After all, the team has been together for five years now and that obviously helps enormously. The cohesion and friendship within our team is probably even the most important factor in our success story,” says David.

From Civilian to Military

“Until 2006 my brother Andy and I were active in a civilian team while the then military team fell apart. As there were vacancies, we were contacted by the Ministry of Defense to continue our activities in the Army. We responded very quickly and enlisted. Ultimately, that resulted in a perfect collaboration," David says.

High-Level Sport

Formation jumping is a high-level sport. That much is obvious. "Outsiders only see the tip of the iceberg, in particular that we are world level," says David. “However, they do not notice the hard work of months and years that always precedes our fine results and from which we ultimately reap the benefits now. We certainly do not forget that our success only comes through hard work."

The team therefore works meticulously with the resources provided to them. "We always try to make the best possible use of the allocated budget," says David. “And that works well. Besides, the budget we receive always translates into results anyway.”

How do they prepare?

"We first work out the formations on the ground via the ‘creepers’ (little carts on wheels). Then we practice different formations in the wind tunnel. This way we get used to the moves before we try out the formation in the air. At a competition you get a frequency of different formations imposed. We then use the creepers to work out the most effective transition from one formation to another only losing as little time as possible," explains David. “All formations exist, but the frequency itself is drawn on the eve of the competition. These are then five or six imposed figures that we must try to repeat as many times as possible within 35 seconds. The team that makes the most imposed figures then wins the competition. And currently we are winning here," David smiles.

Hayabusa

The nickname of the Belgian team is Hayabusa. David explains. “When the team was established, we did not know that we were going to be top of the world. It has always been a dream of ours, but you never know such a thing in advance. Hayabusa is a peregrine falcon, the fastest falcon in the world. Now, years later, that seems to have been a perfect prediction. The fastest bird, the fastest team.”

For David these are his fourth Military Games. “My first participation was in 2007. I am very impressed with this edition. The Chinese do an excellent job here in Wuhan. It would be nice to take gold here," David ends.

Soon we will find out …

(Source: CISM Media and Communication Department - Journalist: Christian Pierre - Pictures: Christian Pierre)