Comparison with Austria – Little Switzerland: A big track and field country – Sport
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World Cup after World Cup, the Swiss delegation is growing. Not a matter of course, as the comparison with Austria shows.
Werner Günthör shot the ball 22.23 meters at the 1987 World Championships in Athletics. The man from Thurgau, who won gold with it in Rome, also wrote national history. Never before had Swiss track and field athletes won precious metal at a World Championships. After two more world championship titles from «Kugel-Werni», 5 more top 3 ranks followed.
With a record contingent of 25 athletes, this yield at the World Championships in Eugene, which starts on Friday, should be increased. A comparison with the Austrian team shows that this delegation is more than impressive. The neighbor to the east, roughly comparable in terms of population and general conditions, has a team of just three people. A quartet would have qualified, heptathlete Ivona Dadic decided not to take part due to a lack of training.
Only one medal is realistic for Austria. And for Switzerland?
Austria is also at a disadvantage when looking at past merits. One silver and 3 bronze medals is the overall World Championship achievement. Discus thrower Lukas Weisshaidinger and heptathlete Verena Preiner only doubled the meager yield in 2019 in Doha with their 3rd places. While Weisshaidinger has medal chances in the US state of Oregon, the motto for Victoria Hudson (javelin throw) and Susanne Walli (400 m) will be: “Being there is everything!”
Since Swiss Athletics is already spoiled. The fact that the conditions are right was underlined at the European Indoor Championships in March in Belgrade with third place in the national ranking. With Mujinga Kambundji, the Swiss women have the fastest European over 100 and 200 m in their ranks this year. And over 4×100 m, in 2022 no relay was faster than that of the Swiss women.
And there is also a hot potato in the men’s fight for medals: For example Simon Ehammer, who holds the world record for the year with 8.45 m in the long jump. Or high jumper Loïc Gasch, who seems capable of anything this season as a grab bag.
35 years after the premiere of “Kugel-Werni” one can probably hope for medal number 9 – or more – from a domestic point of view; and would probably get envious looks from the neighbors to the east.