Fall of teammate clouds Debrunner’s joy at triple gold

Catherine Debrunner is the first Swiss woman to win three gold medals at the same Paralympics. The Thurgau native is experiencing historic games in Paris. But Manuela Schär’s fall dampens her joy.

As Catherine Debrunner stands in the corridor leading to the catacombs of the Stade de France, she could not be happier. After all, she has won gold again in the 1500 m, just as she did in the 5000 m and 800 m. Again with a Paralympic record.

But when the microphones are pointed at her, there is something that makes her speak of “mixed feelings”. Because in this rainy race on the slippery track, her teammate Manuela Schär also fell, colliding with the Chinese Zhou Zhaoqian just at the beginning of the last lap. “I’m experiencing a chaos of emotions right now,” says the Thurgau native.

Schär herself chose similar words after having to digest another disappointment following the gold medal in the 800 m, which was a great relief for her. She spoke of an “annoying and unnecessary mistake”. She had left the Chinese athlete too little space and because they had not operated the regulator of their front wheels at the same time, they collided.

The 39-year-old from Lucerne, who is competing in her last track races in Paris, appears surprisingly calm and composed. And even after such incidents, she doesn’t lose her sense of humor when she congratulates her teammate with a laugh. “It’s really cool that Catherine won. Unfortunately, I had other problems at the time.”

Sleep a lot, win a lot

Debrunner had imagined the race would go differently and had “not at all” expected to stay in front the whole time. But when she realized that no one wanted to go to the front and take the lead, she adjusted her tactics and controlled the race from the front.

“I’m overjoyed and proud that it worked,” says Debrunner, who isn’t even aware that she’s achieved something historic. She is the first Swiss woman to win three gold medals at the same Paralympics. “I’m not that good with statistics, but of course I’m extremely honored. There were so many good wheelchair athletes in Switzerland. The fact that I can be the first to achieve something is a huge honor for me.”

But how does the 29-year-old manage not only to be ready every day despite the strict schedule, but also to break records straight away? She consciously holds back on everything that doesn’t concern her sport, says Debrunner. She gives only a few interviews, focuses on recovery after her duties at the Stade de France, and sleeps a lot. “I have the gold medals on my bedside table. Maybe that’s why I sleep so well,” she says and laughs.

Switching to short distances

On Wednesday, Catherine Debrunner will be making a foray into the short distances with the 100 m race. At the World Championships last year, the East Swiss athlete won silver in this distance. “It’s a change from tactical races to sprint races,” says Debrunner. “But I have some time to prepare.” After that, there are the 400 m and finally the marathon on the program. Debrunner has a chance of winning everywhere. Hopefully the bedside table is big enough.

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