Sport in Switzerland
Switzerland, the playground of the rich and famous, is known for its beautiful mountains perfect for skiing, snowboarding and of course, mountaineering. A haven for winter sports, Switzerland has been the "Mecca" for winter sports enthusiasts since the 19th century.
Patrouille des Glaciers in 2022Switzerland is also known as the number one destination for various international winter sports events like the World Ski Championships and the Winter Olympic Games. As one of the best places to go skiing, it is no wonder that some of the best skiers in the world are Swiss like Didier Cuche and Pirmin Zurbriggen.
Other than skiing, the people of Switzerland also love football. The "Nati", the Swiss national football team, is a member of FIFA and Switzerland also hosted the 1954 FIFA World Cup. That is not much of a surprise since the headquarters of FIFA is located in Zurich. Switzerland also co-hosted the Euro 2008 with Austria.
The Swiss also follow other sports like ice hockey, basketball, motorsport, rugby, tennis, sailing and athletics. Some of the biggest Swiss names in tennis include Martina Hingis, Stanislas Wawrinka and of course Roger Federer. All of which became Grand Slam Champions. Federer is one of the legends in male tennis having won a staggering 20 Grand Slam titles and holding the longest streak as tennis' number one player in history.
Below are details of sports, sporting events and sports people related to Switzerland. See also the list the most popular internet searches for "sports" in Switzerland.
Popular sports of Switzerland (see more)
- Football (Soccer), Ice Hockey, Tennis, Skiing, Gymnastics, Volleyball, Handball, Basketball, motorsports, athletics, sailing
Traditional Sports
- Schwingen — a type of folk wrestling performed in sand
- Hornussen — the hornusser knocks a nut through the air with a long flexible rod
Swiss Sporting Success
- Switzerland's Alinghi sailing team was the first European team to win the America's Cup in 2003, and defended the title in 2007.
Famous Swiss Athletes
- Roger Federer (tennis)
- Martina Hingis (tennis)
- Stéphane Lambiel - two-time winner of the World Figure Skating Championships
Switzerland Sports trivia
- They first competed at the Olympic Games in 1896.
- The Winter Games in St Moritz were plagued with warm weather, slowing some events and even canceling the 10,000-meter speed-skating race.
- In 1956, Switzerland participated in the equestrian events that were held in Stockholm in June, but did not attend the Melbourne Games later that year.
- Short-sighted Swiss center-forward Poldi Kielholz had to wear spectacles in matches of the 1934 finals. Despite his visual limitation, he scored three goals in two matches.
Switzerland at major events
- Switzerland at the Summer Olympics
- Switzerland at the Winter Olympics
- Switzerland at the FIFA World Cup
- Switzerland women's football team at the FIFA Women's World Cup
- Switzerland at the UEFA Euros
Past sporting events events hosted in Switzerland
- 1928 Winter Olympic Games hosts St. Moritz
- 1948 Winter Olympic Games hosts St. Moritz
- 1954 FIFA World Cup Switzerland
- 2008 UEFA European (Euro) Football Championship co-host with Austria
- 2009 IIHF World Championship (for the 10th time)
- 2020 Winter Youth Olympics in Lausanne
- 2020 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championships
- 2021 Winter Universiade in Lucerne, Switzerland (canceled)
Upcoming sporting events in Switzerland
- 2024 UCI Road World Championships in Zürich
- 2025 World Winter Military Games in Bern
- 2027 Alpine World Ski Championships in Crans-Montana.
- 2029 Special Olympics World Winter Games Chur-Graubünden, Switzerland
Annual sporting events held in Switzerland
- The Swiss Cup - annual football (soccer) cup tournament since 1926 by the Swiss Football Association.
- Spengler Cup - annual ice hockey tournament held in Davos, since 1923, possibly the oldest invitational ice hockey tournament in the world.
- Patrouille des Glaciers - an international military race organized by the Swiss Army.
Sporting Facilities in Switzerland
- Stade de Suisse Wankdorf - football stadium in Bern
Other
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