Handball European Championship: Swiss athletes interview Andy Schmid

Roger Federer: How did you get into handball? In Switzerland you start with football or skiing.
Andy Schmid: In fact, I also played some football first. Then we got so heavily rainy at my first tournament that I quickly lost interest. At the age of six or seven, friends in Lucerne took me to handball and that immediately captivated me.

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Ramon Zenhaeuser: Who can catch the ball better, you or your dog?
We are about equally good, whereby Kobe (Schmids Labrador, d. Red.) Mainly catches tennis balls with the snout.

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Belinda Bencic: What is your typical daily routine like?
I don’t have a special ritual. But on a home game day, I try to keep a certain rhythm. In the morning I go for a walk with the dog, then eat something and go for a coffee. So two hours before the kick-off we meet with the team. For away games, the day looks different depending on the travel distance.

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Daniela Ryf: Can you swim dolphin? You should be great in terms of strength and throwing motion.
Four to five moves go pretty well, then I go under because it’s very exhausting. My sister was always the better swimmer of the two of us.

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Christian Stucki: You are two years older than me. What is your secret recipe for regeneration?
Sleep is my top priority. Although I live professionally, I am not a model professional who prepares for a competition like an endurance athlete. I also try to eat what is good for my head and body. And I got good genes from my mother.

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Mujinga Kambundji: What would you have been if it hadn’t been enough for a handball professional?
Good question. I never really thought about it. As a child, I wanted to be a fireman. I would probably have completed my sports and business studies and would have entered the professional world.

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Dominique Aegerter: How well can you make a living from handball?
No soccer salaries are paid. But as a Bundesliga handball player, I can make a very good living from it.

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Dominique Aegerter: How do you build trust in your teammates?
The most important thing is always the performance. Only those who deliver on the field receive the trust and acceptance of their teammates. Although we do team sports, everyone has to contribute to team success first.

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Pablo Brägger: How do you get the resin away from your hands?
Thanks to the high fat content, baby oil works best.

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Pablo Brägger: Where do you feel more comfortable, in Germany or with Nati?
I feel very comfortable in both places. Germany has long been my everyday life. But to return to Switzerland, which always remains my home and where I can speak my language, is always very nice.

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Anouk Vergé-Dépré: Who was your biggest inspiration as a young athlete?
As a child, NBA superstar Kobe Bryant was my idol. I also baptized my dog after him. Since I’ve been a top athlete myself, I’ve found Roger to be more inspiring. His economic movements, his down-to-earthness, how he represents Switzerland abroad – you can learn a lot from him.

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Fabian Cancellara: What is your daily motivation and what goes through your mind when you get up in the morning?
I’ve always played handball with fun. That is still my motivation today. Even if I don’t feel like training, I am aware that it is a privilege to make money with sport. After playing, I often have pain in my feet. So my first thought is how I get down the stairs. And whether my wife has already switched on the coffee machine.

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Marc Streit: My father played handball and always said that handball players were tougher than ice hockey players. What do you think about that?
Both are extremely hard contact sports. Since hockey players wear various schooners and a helmet, handball is more direct on the bones and joints. However, I am not one who plunges into the fray a lot and is covered with bruises after the game.

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Max Heinzer: What is your job at home in the household? I have to take out the trash.
Since my wife is not a big cook, I shop and then cook myself. Our two boys are rather picky about eating. That is why there are two different dishes. I’m not a vegetarian, but meat is rarely on the menu.

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Dario Cologna: In which individual sport would you have been successful?
Tennis has always been my favorite individual sport. I still play regularly today. However, the path to becoming a professional is even more difficult than in handball, and in the end only a few make it.

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Being there is not everything for the handball national team

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So now is the day when our handball nati ends her 14-year losing streak at major tournaments. Of course, the Swiss medal candidates, for whom only Andy Schmid has some EM experience, do not count. Already second place in the preliminary round and thus moving into the next round would be a huge success.

However, the trip to Sweden does not take place under the Olympic motto “being there is everything”. It is important to continue on the path that was taken in 2016 with Nati coach Michael Suter. Because this path has borne considerable fruit – apart from the European Championship qualification: eight of our national players now play in Germany and France, the two best handball leagues in the world. In addition to Schmid, only Alen Milosevic was active abroad when Suter took office. At that time, however, he paused in the national team.

This step away from the comfort zone in the Swiss league is probably the most important of many pieces in the successful puzzle of the handball nation. Thanks to the many legionaries, the team has emancipated itself from the dependence on Andy Schmid. It is no longer at the mercy of the five-fold Bundesliga MVP’s stroke of genius. Only in this way could Switzerland work its way back from insignificance to the European midfield. Against Poland, the Nati is even slightly favored at the EM. And at least against outsider chances are attested against the great handball powers Sweden and Slovenia. A “puncher’s chance” would be said in boxing. After all, dreaming is allowed, says Nati coach Suter. Even more so when the majority of players still have the best handball age ahead of them.

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Swiss group games in Gothenburg

Friday, 10.1. Sweden – Switzerland (8.30 p.m., TV 24)

Sunday, January 12 Switzerland – Poland (4 p.m., SRF 2)

Tuesday, January 14 Switzerland – Slovenia (6.15 p.m., SRF 2)

The first two groups qualify for the main round in Malmö.

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