Schwingen colossus Stucki hangs up his wrestling shorts

Christian Stucki wins at the Federal Wrestling and Alpine Festival in Zug in 2019. Keystone / Alexandra Wey

Christian Stucki, one of the greatest and most successful traditional Swiss wrestlers of all time, has retired from the sport. 

He remains an exceptional figure, both as a person and as a fighter. His last appearance was at the Seeland Wrestling Festival in Lyss over the weekend and he won the tournament.

Gentle giant

At the tender age of eleven, Stucki’s shoe size was already 47. At the beginning of his career, Christian Stucki relied on what nature had given him: huge amounts of strength and a physique that inspired awe. Opponents would sometimes voluntarily concede defeat to prevent the 160-kilo wrestler from squashing them on the ground.

The fear of broken ribs was understandable until the wrestling community realised that “Chrigu” actually made weaker opponents eat the sawdust as gently as possible. And so he revealed himself to be this fascinating person who is as strong as he is gentle.

Legendary are the stories about the young Stucki eating a kilo of sausage in the dressing room before training: A highly unsuitable dietary strategy. He also played football on the side and didn’t quite want to give up Hornussen (a traditional team sport that looks a bit like a cross between golf and baseball).

Nevertheless, he won his first wrestling tournament in 2001 at the age of 16. At the age of 18, he won all six rounds at the prestigious Emmental Wrestling Festival and thus his first wreath. But he was still far from taking wrestling seriously. With all the power and speed at his disposal winning came easy for him until he suffered two setbacks.

Emotionaler Abschied: Christian Stucki am Sonntag in Lyss. © Keystone / Anthony Anex

Stubborn infection

At the Schwarzsee wrestling tournament in 2006, Christian Stucki suffered a bruise on his shin. A seemingly harmless injury turned into an infection that became so dramatic that even an amputation of the lower leg was under discussion. Stucki was unable to work as a forester for 14 months and could not train for a year and a half. 

It may be that this experience made him aware of how a healthy body cannot be taken for granted. Then he met Fabian Lüthi, a specialist in athletic training, who convinced Stucki to do more for the sport of wrestling. From then on, Stucki was seen several times a week at six o’clock in the morning, in the weight room before work. 

The success was immediate. In 2008, Christian Stucki won his first national title. The logical next goal was the title of Schwingen king.

Portrait photo from the year 2016. © Keystone / Christian Beutler

Too easygoing

Stucki’s strength was such that he did not need to be aggressive. Despite loading the barbell to the maximum, he was still doing too many repetitions on the leg press for maximum strength training. Someone had to sit on the bar to ensure it was heavy enough a load for the wrestler. 

No one was stronger than Stucki. What remained was the challenge that Stucki, the human being, did not seem to be made for a hard-fought duel. 

Once again, he met a person who gave him decisive support in an important process. Tommy Herzog was called Stucki’s mental coach because he was able to awaken a mode in him that turned him from the jovial “Chrigu” into a fearsome fighter. 
 

The greatest Swiss wrestlers of all time: In 2007, Jörg Abderhalden and Christian Stucki met in the sawdust ring in Aarau. Keystone / Urs Flueeler

Before the final round of the Swiss Federal Championships in Zug in 2019, Stucki cried in the tent because he thought he had lost the title of the king after two defeats. It turned out differently. And perhaps Stucki was never less himself than in that last minute of the fight in Zug, which made him king. A title that everyone wished Stucki had.

To this day, Christian Stucki, along with Jörg Abderhalden, is one of only two wrestlers to have won all three major festivals – Kilchberger Schwinget, Unspunnenfest, Eidgenössisches.

Christian Stucki stepped away from the sport tis weekend as one of the greatest and most successful of all time. He could have made even more of his potential but he is not the kind who will have any regrets.