Nino Schurter
The Swiss Nino Schurter (born 13 May 1986) grew up in a family of bikers in the Vals Valley. The combination of power and riding technique quickly catapulted Schurter into the top league of the world's best mountain bikers. At the age of 23, he became the youngest rider in bike history to win the elite world championship. Further titles followed. Schurter describes the silver medal at the London Olympics as the biggest defeat of his career. After a tough fight, he was narrowly defeated by Jaroslav Kulhavy. Schurter rides for MTB legend Thomas Frischknecht's Scott-Swisspower team.
www.rsracing.ch
"Me, a rock star? I'm a biker. That has nothing to do with being a rock star."
The caskets are open on the shelf, right next to the television. On the left is the one with the bronze medal from Beijing, on the right the one with the silver medal from London. Nino Schurter can see them from his maroon leather sofa. It's almost as if they are there to remind him how incomplete the ensemble is.
Nino Schurter has achieved almost everything a biker can achieve. He has won the overall World Cup and several world championships. He has two Olympic medals. But the most valuable thing there is to win in sport is still missing. He now wants to complete his medal collection in August. Everything is focussed on the Olympic race in Rio.
It's not easy to get an appointment. Schurter is not a media type. What's more, his daughter Lisa-Sophia was born in October 2015. Schurter welcomes guests to his magnificent house above Chur. Lots of glass, lots of wood, a whirlpool on the huge panoramic terrace. The fully equipped training room is located in the basement. The dictation machine has just been switched on when his wife Nina calls over euphorically from the bassinet: "Look, she's laughing!" Schurter takes a sip of his cappuccino and smiles gently.
Interview with Nino Schurter
BIKE: What is more exciting? Becoming world champion or becoming a father?
Nino Schurter: Definitely: becoming a father. The birth alone. That was the most emotional thing I've ever experienced.
What was it like when you held your daughter in your arms for the first time?
The most beautiful thing of all. As a man, there's not much you can do during a birth. You stand by and try to motivate as best you can. And then the child is born. A tremendous feeling.
You flew to Rio straight after giving birth to take part in the Olympic test race. Not everyone would have done that. Why was the race so important to you?
I hadn't originally planned that. The due date would actually have been a little later, right at the time of the race. It was clear to me that I wanted to be there for the birth. But then the baby came early. It was healthy. My wife was well looked after. That's why I flew to Rio four days later. I really wanted to see the course. After all, I want to win the Olympic gold medal there.
Pictures and videos would not have been enough?
Difficult. It's probably not extremely important whether I was there or not. Nevertheless, if you have such a clear goal in mind as I do, it makes preparation a little easier. What does it look like there? How does the ground feel? What is the climate like? All very important questions. You can't just go on the track like that. It's strictly guarded. So that nobody buries a bomb or anything like that. You can only officially train there four days before the race. The Olympics are a different kettle of fish to a World Cup race.
What was it like to be so far away from your family?
It was a strange feeling. But during the race, it doesn't matter whether you've just become a father or not.
"For me, cross-country is the most beautiful sport in the world. Okay, of course you have to like the suffering a bit."
They say you always toe the line. Some even say you are selfish. Are you an egoist?
I'm just very focussed on what I want to achieve. Of course, as an athlete you have to be selfish somewhere. You're a racing driver. You want to win. Whether I'm selfish or whether that's the nature of sport is debatable. Of course, I hope I'm not selfish in my private life. (laughs)
Do you have to make a decision? Being a professional or being a father? Or can you combine the two?
I need to see that now. I hope that both will work. It should work out. My wife Nina will have to take on a lot. It's all a question of organisation.
Are you a star?
I definitely don't feel like a star. I do what I enjoy doing. And if others like it, then I'm happy. But a star? No, that's not how I see myself.
You have over 190000 Facebook fans.
As an athlete these days, you are also measured by how successful you are on social media. I'm very active there. You can see that athletes who do little in this area have difficulties finding sponsors.
"There are moments when I think: Phew, I've really had a lucky escape."
Is it true that you post photos and videos of the races before you shower?
Well, not exactly before the shower. But I do enjoy posting pictures or editing videos. Last season, I had a GoPro camara with me twice. I was amazed at the pictures it produced. You can deliver content that you can't get anywhere else.
Freeride videos are clicked on millions of times on the internet. YouTube heroes like Danny MacAskill are idolised like rock stars. On a scale of one to ten, how much of a rock star is a cross-country world champion?
Me, a rock star? I'm a mountain biker. That has absolutely nothing to do with being a rock star.
Put another way: how important is a good show?
At the end of the day, it's all about the result. I'm paid to ride my bike well. You don't need a show for that. It's about top-class sport. The best should win. That's what it's all about.
What makes the difference between a successful athlete and a sports star?
You're a sports star if you can move crowds. However, you also have to be at home in the right sport. Tiger Woods is a sports star. Roger Federer is a sports star. But me? No, I'm not a sports star.
Although many more people cycle than play tennis or golf.
Biking has always been too complicated to make it exciting. And too expensive. You can cover a tennis court perfectly with four cameras. You can't film a cross-country race with four cameras. But something is happening now. The images are becoming more and more spectacular. What Red Bull is doing with Red Bull TV is huge. At some point, there will be on-board cameras that produce live images. By then at the latest, the speed and the action will be really intense on TV.
In the nineties, some World Cup races were broadcast live. Back then, the riders were downright idolised, partly because they were such characteristic types. Tinker Juarez, the laid-back hippie. John Tomac, the cool poker face. Mike Kluge, the handsome sonny boy. Which type do you stand for?
That's for others to judge. I'm not trying to be some guy. I am me.
Okay, but still: what would you say?
(ponders) I don't know. I just try to do everything perfectly.
So: the perfectionist?
Yes, as far as I'm concerned. But as I said, it's not about playing any role.
Who did you used to have a poster of above your bed?
From Thomas Frischknecht. But I didn't get into biking because I was a fan of someone. I grew up in a small village. It was just great for cycling there. That's how I got into it, from an early age. There was always a winner's training camp for the top three in the Swiss Cup. Thomas Frischknecht also came to visit. I hadn't even known him before (laughs). He gave me a poster. Well, I just hung it up in my room.
"Cross country is a very mental sport - a constant battle with yourself."
What does a Cross Country feel like?
A lot of pain. But if you can see that the other person is also at their limit, then the duel is also fun. Cross country is a very mental sport. You always have to motivate yourself. It's a constant battle with yourself.
What's so nice about it?
It is the perfect fusion of strength, endurance and technique.
Cross-country riders are seen as ascetic sports machines who never drink beer. Is this image true?
If you want to be successful these days, you have to be absolutely focussed. Nutrition, training, recovery, every detail counts.
There are spectacular freeride videos of you online. Why did you become a cross-country rider?
My brother raced downhill for a while. Me too. My father was the national downhill coach. I started riding downhill in challenging terrain very early on. I enjoy downhills. But for me, cross country is simply the most beautiful sport in the world. You can set off from your front door. You're fit, you don't need a gondola. Okay, of course you have to like the suffering a bit.
When people see you skiing downhill at the World Cups, it takes their breath away. Are you a particularly good downhill skier or just particularly crazy?
You can't win a race on the descents, but you can lose it. If you know you can gain a few metres, then the other guy has to close the hole first. I don't take any particularly high risks. But of course, you can't control every situation one hundred per cent.
Do you ever worry afterwards about what could have happened? You cross-country riders don't wear any protectors.
There are moments when I think: "Phew, I've had a really good time. That's part of sport. You have to push yourself to the limit. But what's at stake? You try to win a race. And sometimes it works. And sometimes it doesn't.
It could also end in hospital, or in a wheelchair.
I rarely had moments like that where I had the feeling that I wouldn't have got up again if I fell. Cross country sometimes looks dangerous, but it's not a particularly dangerous sport. You're not travelling really fast compared to downhill.
You won bronze at the Olympics in Beijing and silver in London. Now you want gold in Rio. What is your plan?
Optimising everything around me. I did tests to see what food I could best tolerate in order to lose maybe half a kilo more. We tested the rolling and grip properties of all kinds of tyres with the team. I get scanned from head to toe to see how my muscle mass is distributed. I complete performance, capacity and VO2 max tests. If you're already living consistently, it's very, very difficult to improve anything.
Do you think you can continue to concentrate one hundred per cent on the sport as a family man?
Yes, because the time you spend not thinking about sport is just as important. You have to be able to switch off, be a normal person, a family man. It's important not to always see yourself as an athlete.
Do you get up at night to change nappies?
Yes. Of course, I hope that this will no longer be necessary so often at night. But at the moment I'm also doing a shift.
You can find the interview with Nino Schurter in BIKE 1/2016.
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