2001 was the year of Andre Bucher
That he even wouldn`t have dreamed before: At he European Indoor Championship in Vienna, he was the fovourite in the 800 m race and finally he only catched the silver medal. The World Champion Andre Bucher became in the Ferry Dusika Stadion "only" second, behind the polish guy, Pawel Czapiewski who was 15 hundred of a second faster than Bucher. But the swiss athlete even ran Swiss indoor record and said: "I have done everything in the right way." And everybody mus agree. Because the 25 year old runner was never faster indoor as in Vienna.
Photo: Kiefner
But the fact, that the swiss couldn`t win the title, shows, that a Champion is also only a human being and no machine or robot. Nevertheless silver is a colour which is not unusual for the 25 year old guy from Neudorf. He has experience with second places. At the Junior-European Championships 1995 in Nirgyhaza (Hungary), at the under 23 European Championships 1997 in Turku (Finland), at the European Championships 1998 in Budapest and at the Universiade in Mallorca it was rainings silver for Bucher. Hardly an athlete showed such a constant shape as Andre Bucher. And 2001 at the World Championships in Edmonton (Canada) he climbed finally on top. He won gold in his special event, the 800 m.
Actually the year 2001 was his year. It was almost not possible for the competitors to beat the tough guy. The swiss with the fair short hair
is very native and modest. Glamour, glitter and Stars belong not to his world. On the contrary - sometimes it is unpleasant for him, if the people recognize him. "I don`t think that I belong to this kind of scene", he says. But against his popularity he is helpless.
Particularly since he is known all over the place. He already is more popular as the skistars and normaly they are sacred in Switzerland. Andre Bucher was elected already the second time to the sportsman of the year.
And this makes him very proud. "This award is a great honour for me, because it was a election from the fans", Bucher said happily. But not only his countrymen rewarded the excellent results. He also was elected to the European athlete of the year.
No wonder about that, Andre Bucher was the most brilliant athlete on the track at 2001.
In Vienna the tall swiss guy, who has a best mark in the 800 m from 1:42,92 min (from 1999) was appointed as the eleventh embassador for the European Championships in Munich in August. In different Interviews Andre Bucher was talking about the European Championships "take place at my front door.
Andre Bucher ist a very optimistic person. The question about his worst defeat in his career, he told: "This is not existing for me. A defeat is, if sombody gives up. I don`t know this kind of things. I can find a positive thing in any kind of setback. The 25 year old athlete loves his sport. "Runnig is the most natural thing whicht exists", he said. "I like to run outside at any kind of weather. It doesn`t matter if it`s raining, snowing or if the sun is shinnig."
I chose running because it takes place in the nature." The 1,86 m tall runner started his career already when he was a small boy at school. His coach Andreas Vögtli helped him to come up. Today he is still his most important adviser and coach.
Andre Bucher finished his education as a teacher. But his money he earns at the moment as a professional- athlete. Beside the 800 m he has results in the 3000 m steeplechase (9:09,73 min), 10 000 m (30:40,5 min), 5000 m (14:06,77 min) or 400 m (47,58 sek).
But this results are quite unimportant for the 25 year old guy, who likes to go in the cinema and traveled very often far away to go in trainingscamps. Kontinents and countries like Australia or Mexico he loves and knows quite well.
"If I want to relax, I take a cup of coffee with some friends and I am never talking about athletics", he said.
But about relaxing nobody will talk in the next month in his neighbourhood. At least of all the world champion himself. The 1,86 m tall runner wants to reach in Munich his first outdoor-title.
For this goal he will prepare in a trainingscamp in St Moritz. He kows excactly: it will be not easy. You can expect that Bucher will have some competitors more than in Vienna. But he is optimistic as usual.
And yout could bet, that he will find a way to win. The lapse, that he will lose, even after three rounds he was more than 20 m in advance, will not happen again. A thing like that will take place only once to a runner like Andre Bucher. And never again.
Ursula Kaiser
