Catherine Debrunner (born 11 April 1995) is a Swiss athlete and teacher. She has competed for Team Switzerland at the 2019 World Para Athletics Championships where she won a gold and silver medal. Individually, she has set new course records at the Berlin Marathon and 2023 Chicago Marathon.
 Debrunner at the 2013 IPC Athletics World Championships | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 11 April 1995 Mettendorf TG | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Education | Thurgau University of Education | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Early life edit
Debrunner was born on 11 April 1995 in Mettendorf, Switzerland.[1] Due to a birth defect in her spine, she uses a wheelchair.[2] While attending a sports camp in Nottwil, she met her future trainer and coach Paul Odermatt.[3]
Career edit
Debrunner competed in the T53 200 metres at the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships, where she earned a silver medal with a time of 30.64.[4] She qualified for the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio,[5] where she finished seventh in the Women's 400 metres.[6] Debrunner subsequently took a break from sports to focus on her education before returning to Team Switzerland for the 2019 World Para Athletics Championships.[7] In Dubai, she earned a gold medal in the Women's 400m T53[8] and a silver medal in the women's 800m T53 race.[9]
At the 2022 Berlin Marathon, Debrunner, competing in her first marathon won the race with a time of 1:36:47, breaking five-time winner Manuela Schär's streak of five Berlin Marathon wins.[10] In May 2023, Debrunner was awarded the Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability award.[11] Later that year, Debrunner set another world record at the Berlin Marathon with a time of 1:34:16[12] and made her U.S. race debut in the 2023 Chicago Marathon in October. During the marathon, Debrunner set a new course record with a time of 1:38:44.[13]
References edit
- ^ "Catherine Debrunner, Athletics". swissparalympic.ch. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
- ^ Bingesser, Felix (18 November 2019). "So herzlich wird Debrunner von ihren Schülern empfangen". blick.ch. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
- ^ "Catherine Debrunner". paralympic.org. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
- ^ Wright, Stephen (23 October 2015). "Fourth-place finish an 'incredible' feeling". Royal Gazette. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
- ^ "The Swiss Paralympic athletes Brazil 2016". houseofswitzerland.org. 7 September 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
- ^ "Results Archive Rio 2016 Athletics - Women's 400 m T53". paralympic.org. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
- ^ Sachers, Laura (29 October 2019). "Aus dem Schulzimmer nach Dubai: Die Hüttlinger Rollstuhlathletin Catherine Debrunner ist zurück im Spitzensport". St. Galler Tagblatt. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
- ^ "Gold für Thurgauerin Catherine Debrunner an der Para-Leichathletik-WM". toponline.ch (in German). 9 November 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
- ^ "Madison de Rozario and Vanessa Low win world para championship gold medals". 7news.com.au. 12 November 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
- ^ "BMW BERLIN-MARATHON 2022". Archived from the original on 25 September 2022. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
- ^ "Messi & Argentina World Cup team win Laureus awards". BBC Sport. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
- ^ "Catherine Debrunner pulverises world record at Berlin Marathon". Paralympics. Archived from the original on 18 November 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
- ^ "Marcel Hug and Catherine Debrunner set new course records at Chicago Marathon". Paralympics. Archived from the original on 18 November 2023. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
External links edit
- Catherine Debrunner at the International Paralympic Committee
- Catherine Debrunner at IPC.InfostradaSports.com (archived)
- Catherine Debrunner at the Swiss Paralympic Committee (in German and French)