Sailing – Discovery Center, Kep West: Kep Takes to the Skies, Meet the Pioneers

Kep West
3 hours ago
5 min read

At Kep, two passionate expats are laying the groundwork for a kitesurf community at the Sailing – Discovery Center of Kep West. Frédéric Seynaeve and Gérard Vann tell us their story.

*Kitesurfing on the choppy waters of the sea near Kep, with the mountains of the Cambodian coast in the background*

At Kep, two passionate expats are laying the groundwork for a kitesurf community at the Sailing – Discovery Center of Kep West. Frédéric Seynaeve and Gérard Vann tell us their story.

There's something in the air at Kep. Literally. For the past few months, colourful kites have been rising above the open sea, carried by a summer wind that insiders have long known about but the wider public is only just beginning to discover. Behind those wings, two men: Frédéric Seynaeve, a Belgian who has made Kep his permanent home, and Gérard Vann, a Swiss-Cambodian who returned to his roots five years ago. Together, they are writing a new chapter in the nautical history of this quiet seaside town.

Frédéric Seynaeve and a fellow rider carve through the waves near the mangrove shores of Kep West

Fred, 60, with a board underfoot his whole life

Frédéric Seynaeve is no stranger to Cambodia. He first set foot here in 1996 as part of a Belgian mission, and it was love at first sight. He came back in 2009 with his ex-wife Lisa and their son, landed in Kep — and something happened. Hard to define, but impossible to ignore. In 2013, he and Lisa opened Lily Cream, an ice cream venture whose products have been served at the Sailing – Discovery Center from day one. A loyalty that says a great deal about the bonds formed with this place.

For years, Fred shuttled back and forth between France and Cambodia. Last year, he made the leap: sold everything — including an off-grid house he had built with his own hands — and settled in Kep for good. No hesitation, no looking back. "Kep, that's for certain," he says, with a disarming calm.

Kitesurfing has been part of his life for a long time. It was his cousin who first put a kite in his hands, about twenty years ago. Already a dedicated windsurfer, he was immediately drawn in. But life gets in the way. Time was short. It was eventually in Kampot that he truly refined his skills, before finding in the waters of Kep his favourite playground.

His road to the sport has not been without rough patches. Seven years ago, Frédéric suffered a serious accident — 26 fractures. Doctors were not optimistic about him returning to sport. A year later, he was back on a board. "It was quite a challenge," he admits, and you believe him instantly. Today, at 60, he talks about kitesurfing as a school for life. "You learn a lot about yourself. Pushing boundaries, daring to jump, to try new moves…" There is something that sounds very much like gratitude in his voice.

A rider catches air above the flat waters near the mangrove, the ideal playground identified by the Sailing – Discovery Center team

Gérard, born here, returned by choice

Gérard Vann is a singular figure. Born in Cambodia, Swiss by nationality, he returned five years ago carrying solid project management experience and a long-standing passion for board sports. "I love everything to do with water," he says simply — and the Pounamu he wears around his neck, a Maori jade pendant given to him by someone dear, seems to confirm a deep affinity with the elements. Windsurfing in a previous life, kitesurfing and wingsurfing now. Water remains his natural territory.

What brings Gérard, Fred and their friends together around the Sailing – Discovery Center is more than a shared passion. It is a certain vision of Cambodia as a chosen home, and a genuine desire to pass something on. The group forms an unlikely Francophone microcosm — a Belgian, a Swiss-Cambodian, an Italian — all connected by the French language and a love of open water. "We love Cambodia, we love the kindness of the people. That, above all, is what drew us here," Gérard sums up.

A virgin spot, kilometres of playground

What strikes you listening to them is the quiet enthusiasm of people who have stumbled upon something rare. "We're discovering an area that is still completely untouched," Gérard confides. It took time — and patience — to identify the right spots, places where the wind actually holds. The result: near a mangrove, a stretch of water extending for kilometres, with flat, shallow zones ideal for beginners and a few choppier sections for those who want waves. A setting that combines, in short, what you rarely find in one place.

Kep's greatest asset remains its summer wind: stable, consistent, reliable. A natural resource that the two IKO-certified instructors intend to make the most of. Gérard is unequivocal on the question of safety: "It's one of the few sports where I genuinely recommend taking lessons before you start." The 22-metre lines that transmit the kite's power leave no room for beginner mistakes. Going it alone simply isn't a sensible option here.

A certified local rider prepares his kite on the beach at Kep West — one of the first Cambodians to earn his kitesurfing certification through the programme.

A structure taking shape, a community growing

Fred is working towards his IKO certification this year. Gérard is already certified. Between them, they form the core of a small school progressively taking shape within the Sailing – Discovery Center at Kep West. But the ambition goes beyond formal instruction. "For me, it's more about building a community of kitesurfers than running a school as such," Gérard clarifies. The idea is an ecosystem: lessons for beginners, a pathway towards level 3 — the autonomy threshold at which riders can rent equipment and head out independently — and a collective dynamic that grows at its own pace.

One Cambodian rider has already been certified, six months ago. Other young locals are currently in training. To make the sport accessible despite its cost — a new setup runs to around 2,000 dollars — Fred and Gérard import second-hand equipment from Europe. "We give them the gear," Gérard says of the local certified riders, with a matter-of-factness that tells you everything about the spirit of this project.

On the wingfoil side, a small community from Phnom Penh is already making the trip to Kep at weekends. Kitesurfing, more technical and more demanding, will likely take a little longer to take hold — but the foundations are firmly in place.

"Come to Kep West to take lessons," Gérard says by way of invitation. "We have a small setup that's coming together. And on top of that, it's a beautiful place." Honestly, it's hard not to want to find out for yourself.