Viktorija Golubic, Jil Teichmann, Simona Waltert, coach Heinz Günthardt and Belinda Bencic (from left to right) are the team of the year. Image: keystone
10.12.2023, 20:3410.12.2023, 22:43
Team of the Year: Team Switzerland Women (Tennis)
The Swiss tennis women are crowned world champions for the first time in Glasgow with their final victory in the Billie Jean King Cup. Individual athletes become the perfect team.
It was a triumph with an announcement, and yet a surprise – at least on paper. The Swiss had already come very close to victory in the Billie Jean King Cup the year before and only failed in the final against Russia. A year later, the long-awaited first triumph was achieved in cool Scotland.
Captain Heinz Günthardt’s secret to success? The Swiss are better as a team than their individual parts and can therefore overcome supposedly stronger opponents. The star is the team – and its best player is perfect for these shared moments.
The Swiss women shortly after their triumph in Glasgow.Image: keystone
In 2021, Belinda Bencic was crowned Olympic champion as part of the Swiss Olympic team and won the award for individual athlete of the year. In Glasgow, the Eastern Swiss woman was a bench player and shone with five wins in five games. In addition, Günthardt had two options with the fiery left-hander Jil Teichmann and the calmer right-hander Viktorija Golubic, which kept the opponents guessing. And perhaps crucial to the match: everyone in this team allows each other to make appearances and achieve successes.
Because of the new mode, the Swiss, who came onto the pitch to the Lo and Leduc hit from “Tüüfel im Roten Chleid”, had to celebrate their historic victory in a foreign stadium without many fans. They created the celebratory atmosphere themselves. They achieved what Martina Hingis and Patty Schnyder narrowly missed in 1998. Thanks to the devilishly good mixture, the champagne corks popped for the Swiss team of the year in faraway Scotland.
Coach of the Year: Thomas Stauffer
Thomas Stauffer has been the chief conductor of the Swiss men’s alpine team for years. In the background, he pulls the strings that are essential for success.
The coach of the year is not a loudspeaker. He leaves the spotlight to others. The quiet, meticulous creator convinces through actions. As head coach of the Swiss-Ski men’s alpine team, Thomas Stauffer lays the foundation for successful work on the world’s racing slopes. The 54-year-old from the Bernese Oberland plans and organizes – and thus keeps those responsible in the individual disciplines free for their work with the drivers.
Thomas Stauffer is often in the background in the ski circus – now he has been recognized for his work.Image: keystone
Stauffer is considered an authority in the Alpine circus. Thanks in part to his long work abroad, his network is more extensive than that of all of his trainer colleagues. He started his coaching career at Swiss-Ski, at the European Cup level in the women’s team. But then it moved into the distance. He worked in various positions in the USA, Sweden and Germany for a total of more than ten years.
Nine years ago in the spring, Stauffer returned to the Swiss association – as the successor to the Austrian Walter Hlebayna, who had resigned as head coach after a year with many misunderstandings.
Under Stauffer’s leadership, the team, in which the drivers had previously provided success stories in the speed area for a long time, developed into a team that now has drivers with the potential for victories and top positions in all disciplines.
Paralympic athlete of the year: Marcel Hug
Marcel Hug is voted Paralympic Athlete of the Year in Switzerland for the ninth time at the Sports Awards. The wheelchair athlete from the canton of Thurgau has been unbeaten for a year and has triumphed at marathons in New York, Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin and Chicago, among others.
Marcel Hug cannot be beaten at the moment.Image: keystone
With Catherine Debrunner and Manuela Schär, he left two other wheelchair athletes behind him and, with nine titles, is now only one behind the record winner Heinz Frei. Hug also won the title of Newcomer of the Year once.
MVP: Manuel Akanji
Manuel Akanji reached a new dimension this year. The central defender proved himself under the best coach in the world and became the title hamster.
Manuel Akanji traveled to Switzerland shortly after the end of his Premier League game.Image: keystone
Manuel Akanji is the logical winner of the MVP of the Year award – as the outstanding Swiss player in a team sport. As a regular player at Manchester City, the Winterthur native hoarded multiple titles, with winning the Champions League as the highlight.
Akanji triumphed in the election with a large lead over ice hockey professional Nico Hischier and handball goalie Nikola Portner.
(dab/sda)
More coming soon…
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2023-12-10 19:34:00
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