There's a feeling of joie de vivre right now in French squash thanks to two fresh-faced teenagers who are already re-writing the history books.
Whilst it's always unwise to put too much pressure on young shoulders, Lauren Baltayan and Amir Khaled-Jousselin's achievements so far are raising hopes that the heady days of Camille and Greg may soon return.
Baltayan, born and raised in Cairo to a French mother and Egyptian/Armenian father, may be just 5ft tall, but she scurries around the court with tigerish energy and has the trademark Egyptian attacking style.
Baltayan made her France senior debut aged just 15 at the 2023 European Team Championships. A year later, she and Khaled-Jousselin were the mainstays of France's first ever European U19 Mixed Team Championship victory, handing England only their third defeat in the competition's 41-year history.
Winning the British Junior Open in January this year by beating feted Indian superstar Anahat Singh in the final was undoubtedly a breakthrough moment for Baltayan.
In early April, she finished off her junior career in aptly triumphant fashion in Krakow, lifting the European U19 Individual title for the second year in a row, and then leading les bleus to a third consecutive team title, defeating England again, in a nail-biting final.
In doing so, 18-year-old Baltayan and Khaled-Jousselin totted up five European Individual and Team gold medals each, overtaking James Willstrop, Chris Simpson and Emily Whitlock's all-time record (aged only 17, Khaled-Jousselin could end up with seven next year!).
Baltayan has already won four PSA Challenger titles, but the rest of her season will see her operating a higher plane, with trips to the British Open and World Championships.
Currently world no.52, she may not quite be reaching the insane early heights of fellow teenager Amina Orfi, but, who knows, a steadier incline may prove more sustainable.
After the recent European U19 victories in Krakow, Baltayan revealed that a five-game defeat to Egyptian Jana Swaify in the 2025 British Junior Open semi-finals had proven a turning point.
"That was really a wake-up call to train harder and come back stronger next year," she revealed.
"I worked with my coach in Egypt, Ahmed Effat, and my fitness coach, and on the mental side they brought a huge change in the way I'm playing right now and how I see the game. They completely changed how I used to play.
"The problem with me was I used to be leading and quite often lose, so there was definitely something in how I was approaching matches mentally, not just squash or fitness.
"I now take more pleasure in the way I play, I don't focus only on the result. I know I've done the work and that gives me confidence the results will come. I'm really proud of myself."
And what about LA 2028? The qualification process appears to give Baltayan a decent chance.
Her best way in looks to be via the rankings as the top-ranked player from her nation. Overtaking current French no.1 Melissa Alves would require a leap of just 28 places in two years. An exciting prospect indeed.
As for Khaled-Jousselin, he will join Baltayan in Amsterdam at the end of April when he makes his senior France debut at the European Team Championships.
Lightning quick around the court, the Nancy-born 17-year-old has dominated the European junior scene for the last couple of years and racked up three straight PSA Challenger titles at the end of 2025.
Unlike Baltayan, Khaled-Jousselin's hopes of Olympic qualification look slim, with compatriot Victor Crouin sitting in the world top 10, old stagers Gregoire Marche and Baptiste Masotti still in the top 20, and a 20-year-old prospect starting to make waves on the PSA Tour, Melvil Scianimanico.
But if you're looking for portents, how about this? Khaled-Jousselin is just about to begin his last term at Pierre de Coubertin High School, named after the founder of the modern Olympic Games and the International Olympic Committee! Will Amir honour his school's founder by becoming an Olympian alumnus at Brisbane 2032?
There's plenty of road to travel before then, of course, and young Amir seems to have a wise perspective.
Asked about returning to next year's European U19 Championships to become a seven-time gold medallist, he said: "I don't think about this. I have a lot of tournaments to play before that, and I will train all the time to make it happen.
"I train up to two hours after school each day. Sometimes it's a bit tough but I try to do my best all the time and see how I can improve more and more."
He will become a full-time pro after finishing school this summer. Based at Squash des Reves in Nancy and coached by French national coach Renan Levigne, he has all the attributes and support to launch a stellar career.
"I really want to push to do my best performances at every tournament. My ambition is to become a world top 10 player, win the senior World Championship or become world no.1."
