Brilliant Bucher – the Swiss year in athletics

Bucher carried the flag for Switzerland throughout 2001 Keystone Archive

Andre Bucher's gold medal at the world championships in Edmonton ensured that 2001 went down as an historic year in Swiss athletics.

Pulling away from his rivals with a majestic sprint in the last 150 metres of the 800 metres final, Bucher became the first Swiss runner ever to win a world championship race.

Following the disappointment of the Sydney Olympics when Bucher was elbowed off the track before finishing the final in fifth place, the man from Lucerne might have been happy enough if Edmonton had been the only win of his season.

Golden jackpot

But for Bucher 2001 was to be a season of multiple highlights. Winning five of his six races at the Golden League meetings, the 25-year-old star earned a share of the League’s 50kg gold jackpot – again becoming the first Swiss athlete to do so.

Confirming his current superiority in the 800 metres discipline, Bucher then won his 11th race of the year over the distance to clinch victory at the season-ending Grand Prix in Melbourne and top the overall men’s rankings – yet another Swiss first.

Bucher’s amazing year thoroughly expected award for Swiss Sportsman of the Year was about the only thing that wasn’t a first, with the talented runner having picked up the trophy last year as well.

“Perfect season”

At the awards ceremony, Bucher described his season to swissinfo in one word: “perfect”. Few would disagree, although Bucher himself must surely wish his domination of the season could have come one year earlier when Olympic glory was up for grabs.

With Athens 2004 still a distant spot on the horizon, Bucher must instead now try to keep his standards high. But with veteran rival Wilson Kipketer and young pretender Juri Borsakowski giving chase, 2001 could prove a very tough act to follow.

As for the others…

While Bucher may have deservedly hogged the limelight, the Swiss athletics association insisted in its annual review that there had been plenty of other performances to celebrate.

Bucher’s compatriots at the Edmonton games had all fulfilled their minimum targets, the association pointed out, while good results at the student games in Peking and Bucher’s bronze medal at the world indoor championships were held up as further examples.

Setting out their stall for next year’s European Championships (August 6-11), the association said they hoped to travel to Munich with a team of around 20 athletes. An early target of one to two medals has been set.

Good hosts

While the majority of Swiss athletes are still a long way off matching Andre Bucher’s world-beating feats, Switzerland’s aptitude for hosting top quality international events was proven once more in 2001 with thrilling meetings in Lausanne and Zurich.

There were American fireworks at Lausanne’s Athletissima on July 4, as Maurice Greene and Marion Jones celebrated Independence Day with explosive victories in the 100 metres.

After suffering a shock defeat in Edmonton, Jones was back to her best at Zurich’s Weltklasse in August while compatriot Tim Montgomery took advantage of Greene’s absence to set a new course record in the showcase sprint.

The winner in the 800 metres at both events was, of course, a certain A. Bucher.

by Mark Ledsom

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