posted Sep 10th, 2021 - It was in September 2018 when the Belgian world-class team ISR FireFlash attended their last outdoor competition. It was the Belgian national championship event that NMP PCH HayaBusa won with a 27.6 average. Little over a month later, HayaBusa then won their 3rd FAI gold medals in Australia.

In the meantime, ISR FireFlash was hit by a very unfortunate accident at the end of the team's second year together. Glenn Straeluyc was injured severely in a work accident shortly after the national championships. His L1 vertebra broke when he fell through a roof, and he had to undergo surgery twice. However, FireFlash were confident that Glenn Straeluyc would recover quickly and be back in training and competition action soon.

Sven Ibens' former Thunder ISR team mate Jacco van Eerden was helping out at a few indoor meets at the end of 2018 until Glenn Straeluyc was ready for indoor action. It was a strong and promising comeback for him at the World Challenge 2019, where FireFlash finished with a 27.0 average in 8th place.

ISR FireFlash were still approaching the outdoor part of 4-way training and competition very cautiously and scheduled even their indoor schedule always considering the physical situation of their team mate. FireFlash attended only two more meets since the World Challenge in 2019, the ISR Grand Prix in November 2019 and the Wind Games in January 2020.

---

Belgian Nationals 2018		1		2		3		4		5		6		7		8		9		10		11		Total	Avg
Rank	AAA Class	8,H,E,1		19,3,4		N,11,G,10		A,17,14		B,D,7,5		21,15,9		12,F,L,M		6,C,J,O		P,2,Q,22		K,20,16		13,18,9		Total	Avg
1	NMP-PCH Hayabusa	26		25		23	-1	24		37		25		32		34	-2	26	-1	24	-1	-		276	27.6
2	Echochamber	23		18		19		17	-3	26	-1	20	-1	24	-2	27	-3	19	-4	18		-		211	21.1
3	ISR FireFlash	18	-2	17		19		20		27		18	-1	25		25	-2	20		19		-		208	20.8
4	JETMAX	15		11	-1	11		9		14		11	-2	16	-1	15	-1	14		11		-		127	12.7
5	Falco	10	-1	9		11		11		12		7	-2	11		13		12		6	-2	-		102	10.2
6	Lentonopeus	9		10		8		10		10		7		11		12		11		7	-1	-		95	9.5

---

ISR FireFlash at the Belgian Outdoor Nationals 2018

---

It was almost exactly three years after the last outdoor competition when Glenn Straeluyc and his FireFlash team mates decided to attend an outdoor competition, the national championships at the beginning of September.

ISR FireFlash's comeback efforts were even rewarded with the national 4-way title. NMP PCH HayaBusa took a break from the national championships this year, after winning their 4th set of FAI world meet gold medals at the FAI Tanay Mondial 2020, and there was no serious domestic opposition for the second Belgian world-class team.

Ayro and Falco both finished with new team record averages after a 10-round battle that Ayro eventually won by five points. Phoenix started into the AAA Class competition with a 10.0 average, after competing in the A Class of 2018 and in the AA Class of 2019. None of the three Belgian AAA Class teams behind ISR FireFlash attended a live competition in the pandemic season of 2020. Only Ayro participated in the NSL Cloud Mondial 2020, together with NMP PCH HayaBusa in the top spot, and with High Voltage on the AA Class leaderboard.

---

Belgian Outdoor Nationals 2021			1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Total	Avg
Rank	AAA Class		16,D,18	E,13,L,2	19,C,6	H,F,J,O,21	8,11,20	5,P,1	N,10,15	M,22,A,9	14,G,4	B,Q,17,12	Total	Avg
1	ISR FireFlash	BE	20	21	20	29	14	22	17	19	16	19	197	19.7
2	Ayro	BE	14	14	14	23	13	16	12	17	12	13	148	14.8
3	Falco	BE	13	17	13	23	11	15	10	15	13	13	143	14.3
4	Phoenix	BE	8	11	8	16	9	10	9	14	8	7	100	10.0

All teams at the Belgian Outdoor Nationals 2021

---

High Voltage posted their own first 2-digit meet average (10.5) on the AA Class leaderboard, after the previous 8.3 in at the NSL Cloud Mondial in August 2020. Three current High Voltage members (Lena Clynhens, Evelyne Wauters, Maxim Paternoster) had started in the Rookie Class competition of the ISR Grand Prix 2018 and moved up into the A Class of 2019.

The NSL Cloud Mondial 2020 was the one and only AA Class experience for the current lineup, with new member Hanne Verbauwhede and Johannes Wirt on camera, before this year's national championships at the beginning of the month.

High Voltage won the Belgian AA Class title without any domestic competition. It was still only the 3rd place on the AA Class leaderboard, as Qatar coach Luc Verstrepen brought the two Qatar farm teams, Cheetahs and Lions, to his home country's national championship event for competition practice.

He continued traveling with the Cheetahs after the 18.8 average in Belgium. The German Outdoor Nationals 2021 began only a few days later and a driving distance away, and the Cheetahs now put all the German AA Class teams in place. Luc Verstrepen could not defend his German 4-way title though, as Oceanside AtomiX finished only 2nd. HayaBusa's David Grauwels was more successful in Germany. He was coaching Meltemi Illertissen to the 4-way Women title.

---

Belgian Outdoor Nationals 2021			1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Total	Avg
Rank	AA Class		22,19	D,20,C	K,E,F,G	21,18	M,4,J	15,H,1	O,N,P,Q	6,B,11	A,2,9	14,8	Total	Avg
1	Cheetahs	QA	13	18	25	14	22	17	31	17	20	11	188	18.8
2	Lions	QA	15	17	25	13	17	16	25	15	18	13	174	17.4
3	High Voltage	BE	7	7	17	7	12	9	18	10	9	9	105	10.5
Rank	A Class		9,21	19,8	A,C,K	H,D,E	Q,J,6	7,P	N,F,B	L,O,M	4,2	G,O,2	Total	Avg
1	Fastfox	HU	6	5	8	7	7	7	8	8	2	7	65	6.5
Rank	Rookie		B,Q,D	O,P,J	N,G,C	A,F,M	K,E,H	L,E,K	Q,D,H	J,N,O	M,A,P	C,G,B	Total	Avg
1	Garudas	BE	13	14	10	12	8	9	15	8	9	10	108	10.8
2	Team Karmeliet	BE	3	2	1	2	0	0	3	4	5	4	24	2.4
3	TEAMEXTREME	BE	2	6	2	0	2	2	2	3	2	1	22	2.2
4	Fuelled By Eddy	BE	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	2	0.2

---