Fabian Cancellara holds a record of four World Time Trial Championships titles, is a gold medalist at the Beijing Olympic Games and has won three out of five Monuments of Cycling: Milan-Sanremo (2008), Tour of Flanders (2010) and Paris-Roubaix (2006 and 2010). Read Article
Chris McCormack is a four Time World Champion Triathlete, having competed as a professional athlete for almost two decades. Author of the New York Best selling book, I'm Here to Win, he continues to split his time between Australia, Los Angeles and Zurich during the year. Read Article
Nino Schurter grew up in Tersnaus, Val Lumnezia in the Romansch-speaking part of Switzerland. He is one of the best cross country mountain bike racers in the world and won the silver medal during the Olympics 2012 in London and is cross country mountain bike world champion 2012. Read Article
Reto Schoch is an extreme athlete, dedicated to the sport of ultracycling. He has won the Race Across America, Tortour Switzerland, and the Race across the Alps in 2011/2012. Reto holds a Ph.D. in Microsystems and Microelectronics from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne, and has worked as a postdoctoral candidate at MIT and Stanford. Additionally, he has founded his own tech start-up, swissfluidics ag, in 2010. Read Article
Dani Wyss is a family man and a maintenance technician in a Chemicals factory in the Swiss canton of Wallis, but he is also one of the greatest cyclists on the globe. Read Article
Ronnie Schildknecht, Ironman champion, is a passionate athlete. He loves to swim, bike and run on a daily basis. Read Article
Date — 13 September, 2012
Iker Martinez is a versatile sailor, with accomplishments ranging from winning a World Championship in an Olympic high-performance skiff one year, to coming in second in a double-handed Around the World Race the next.
He is a true sportsman, loving competition over anything. With two Olympic Medals, three World Championship Titles, Podiums in Oceanic Regattas, and more – he isn’t done yet.
Train hard and never give up, even when things seem to be going wrong.
What is your greatest challenge in training?
Being able to perform in training with the same intensity and accuracy as in the competition.
What has been your greatest accomplishment to date?
Winning my 2004 Athens Olympics Gold Medal in 49er Class.
How do you ensure you find adequate time for training?
Training is essential in our sport; physical condition, manouvers and boat performance must be optimal. When not in competition we train every day, it is as important as competing.
What is the best advice you can give to anyone competing in a sporting challenge?
Train hard and never give up, even when things seem to go wrong.
What drives you and makes you passionate for your sport?
The challenge of winning more competitions, and of becoming better every day.
Do you rehearse strategies, execution, & feelings for every competition?
Of course. Our sport depends on the weather conditions (wind, waves, current, tide..), so depending on where you are going to sail, the preparation will be completely different. I think that you can’t rehearse feelings, but they are part of the game. Therefore, before the start of any challenge, we try to be aware of the competitors’ performance, and of our own our latest performance on the boat, just to see where we are and what to expect.
Do you enjoy positive rivalries with opponents and teammates?
Yes! Training with top teams makes you better. We have always tried to train with the best teams of the moment, as you can learn a lot – though you might suffer more than expected. Winning a tight race gives you more satisfaction, especially because it means you have competed at your maximum level.
Do you draw lessons after every competition towards better performance?
I do. We analize the races, see how we have sailed, and how the others have fared. It is important to do so in order to improve in the future.
Do you think sport is good preparation for life?
Certainly. As in life, your efforts are not always rewarded in sport. Unexpected things can happen, but you have to move forward and hop on to the next challenge. The goal is always to win.
Fabian Cancellara holds a record of four World Time Trial Championships titles, is a gold medalist at the Beijing Olympic Games and has won three out of five Monuments of Cycling: Milan-Sanremo (2008), Tour of Flanders (2010) and Paris-Roubaix (2006 and 2010). Read Article
Chris McCormack is a four Time World Champion Triathlete, having competed as a professional athlete for almost two decades. Author of the New York Best selling book, I'm Here to Win, he continues to split his time between Australia, Los Angeles and Zurich during the year. Read Article
Nino Schurter grew up in Tersnaus, Val Lumnezia in the Romansch-speaking part of Switzerland. He is one of the best cross country mountain bike racers in the world and won the silver medal during the Olympics 2012 in London and is cross country mountain bike world champion 2012. Read Article
Reto Schoch is an extreme athlete, dedicated to the sport of ultracycling. He has won the Race Across America, Tortour Switzerland, and the Race across the Alps in 2011/2012. Reto holds a Ph.D. in Microsystems and Microelectronics from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne, and has worked as a postdoctoral candidate at MIT and Stanford. Additionally, he has founded his own tech start-up, swissfluidics ag, in 2010. Read Article
Dani Wyss is a family man and a maintenance technician in a Chemicals factory in the Swiss canton of Wallis, but he is also one of the greatest cyclists on the globe. Read Article
Ronnie Schildknecht, Ironman champion, is a passionate athlete. He loves to swim, bike and run on a daily basis. Read Article
