Team Belgium - WOC (Helsinki)

Team Belgium - WOC (Helsinki) 17 October 2026

The 48th World Othello Championship will take place this year in Helsinki, Finland. As was the case last year in Ankara, Belgium will be sending a full team of five players. The competition will be held in the Finnish capital from 25 to 28 November.

As usual, the tournament will start with a reception on the evening of Wednesday, 25 November, during which the draw for the first round will also take place. On Thursday, 26 November, and Friday, 27 November, 13 rounds will be played to determine who advances to the semi-finals and finals. Our Belgian players have no illusions about their chances: there will be very strong opponents in all three categories — the open, women's and youth competitions. Nevertheless, we remain hopeful that there may be some surprises. The finals will take place on Saturday, 28 November. The day will conclude with the 'victory dinner', including the official awards ceremony.

All information is available on the official website of the 48th World Othello Championship.

Team Belgium

The following five players will represent our country this year:

Tom Schotte

  • Age: 42
  • Hometown: Oudenaarde
  • Qualified as: Belgian Champion
  • World Championship appearances: 14 (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2023, 2025)
  • Best World Championship result: 9th (2013 - Stockholm)
  • Achievements: 16-time Belgian Champion, two-time European runner-up
  • Playing Othello since 2001, competing since 2003
  • Player profile

Ralph Reijnders

  • Age: 40
  • Hometown: Lanaken
  • Qualified as: 2nd place in the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix
  • World Championship appearances: 3 (2022, 2023, 2025)
  • Best World Championship result: 30th (2025 - Ankara)
  • Achievements: Runner-up in the Belgian Grand Prix in 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026
  • Playing Othello since 2000, competing since 2001
  • Player profile

Wouter Thijs

  • Age: 35
  • Hometown: Hasselt
  • Qualified as: 4th place in the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix
  • World Championship appearances: 1 (2025)
  • Best World Championship result: 50th (2025 - Ankara)
  • Achievements: Winner of the Ottignies youth tournament in 2006
  • Playing Othello since 2006, competing since 2006
  • Player profile

Nancy Darck

  • Age: 54
  • Hometown: Bande
  • Qualified as: Best female player in the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix
  • World Championship appearances: 4 (2015, 2022, 2023, 2025)
  • Best World Championship result: 48th (2015 - Cambridge)
  • Achievements: Winner of the Belgian Grand Prix in 2023 and 2026 (women's category), Belgian women's champion in 2022 and 2025
  • Playing Othello since 2020, competing since 2021
  • Player profile

Sacha Burnay

  • Age: 13
  • Hometown: Bande
  • Qualified as: Winner of the 2025 Belgian Junior Grand Prix
  • World Championship appearances: 1 (Ankara)
  • Best World Championship result: 92nd (2025 - Ankara)
  • Achievements: Belgian youth vice-champion in 2025
  • Playing Othello since 2022, competing since 2022
  • Player profile