Team Switzerland - Profile

Highlights:

Switzerland has sent a delegation of athletes to participate at each edition of the Paralympic Games.

The NPC's most experienced Paralympian is Heinz Frei, who has competed at nine editions of the summer Games and won more than 20 medals. He made his Paralympic debut at the 1984 Games, and has won gold medals in both athletics and cycling. His first gold came in athletics in 1984, and he claimed his 14th gold medal in the men's H2 time trial in cycling at London 2012. He competed in both athletics and cycling at Rio 2016, when he was age 58, and has also won medals in cross-country skiing at the Paralympic Winter Games.

Franz Nietlispach also won 14 gold medals at the Paralympic Games, claiming his titles in athletics over distances ranging from 200m to the marathon, between 1980 and 2000. He competed in cycling later in his career, and secured a bronze medal in the HCB/HCC time trial at the 2004 Games in Athens when he was age 46.

Switzerland's total of four podium finishes [two gold, two silver] at Rio 2016 was the NPC's lowest number of Paralympic medals since the 1964 Games in Tokyo. All four medals were won by T54 wheelchair racer Marcel Hug, who claimed gold in the men's 800m and marathon, as well as silver in the 1500m and 5000m. Hug was making his fourth Paralympic appearance in Brazil and had never previously won gold.

Anthem Title: Schweizerpsalm [DE], Cantique suisse [FR], Salmo svizzero [IT], Psalm svizzer [Romansch]

Anthem Inducted: 1981

Official NPC Name: Swiss Paralympic Committee

IPC Recognition Date: 1989

Delegation President: Rene Will

IPC Members: Denis Oswald [entry in the IOC: 1991], Dr Rene Fasel [entry in the IOC: 1995], Gianni Infantino [entry in the IOC: 2020]

First OG/PG Appearance: 1960

Number OG/PG Appearances: 16 [Tokyo 2020 included]

Summary: