[ad_1]
Mujinga Kambundji missing, Alex Wilson missing, Jason Joseph missing: Swiss athletes have to give up three of their best trump cards at the World Indoor Championships in Poland. However, the line-up is bigger than ever: Switzerland sends 23 athletes to Torun, nine of them are under 23.
Simon Ehammer (21) is one of them. The all-rounder is together with sprinter Ajla del Ponte (24) the best hope of a medal in Switzerland. In his first big event with the asset, the Swiss from eastern Switzerland could do really well against competitors like decathlon world record holder Kevin Mayer (Fr). “It’s an extremely good course,” says Ehammer. “But if I can deliver what I can do, I will be far, far ahead.”
That sounds cheeky, but there are good reasons for this self-confidence. Ehammer is getting better and better: in recent months he has made the desired leap in throwing performance: in the shot put, the 15m mark is no longer out of reach, after last year’s 13th distance was the highest of emotions.
A medal is needed, six final places are required
Competitive Sports Director Philipp Bandi calls the large selection “extremely nice.” “It shows that we have become even stronger across the board.” Many of the young athletes are supposed to get their first experience at major events, but it is also clear that results are needed as well. “Specifically, we want six final places. One medal is mandatory, two would be very good. “
These are the greatest Swiss hopes
In addition to Del Ponte and Ehammer, some appearances will be interesting: those of the pole vaulter Angelica Moser (23), the 800m woman Lore Hoffmann (24), Ricky Petrucciani (20) of the 400m men and Charles Devantay ( 22), off-roader Annik Kälin (20) and hurdlers Noemi Zbären (26) and Ditaji Kambundji (18) are among them.
And then there are the veterans. Lea Sprunger (31) starts over 400m as the defending champion. It’s doubtful that he can run right in front after his hip flexor stiffens, but Romande’s experience should not be underestimated. Even when he won the title in 2019, he didn’t come with blazing fast times and then delivered. Like Selina Rutz-Büchel (29), she is doubly valuable from the point of view of the head of the delegation, Bandi: “The boys should see how a Lea or a Selina approach such competition. They can learn a lot from them and learn a lot. “For the Swiss athletics boom to get the next boost.
