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Ronnie Schildknecht

Mr Ironman Switzerland

By InnerVoice

December 2^nd, 2016

i won against my inner weak

My granddad was a famous cyclist — 6th at the Tour de France in 1953 and the first ever winner of the green jersey – and on his deathbed, he told me that I always have to attack, to sprint away. I didn’t understand what he meant at the time, I was very young, but today I know what he wanted to tell me...

I think it’s to push through rough patches. I’ve had moments in races where I was mentally and physically on the edge, and they are exactly the moments you can define yourself. Are you going to quit, or go on? It helps me in everyday life to deal with problems. In real life, there are harder moments mentally, but sport challenges you physically and mentally; it toughens you up. I’ve got much more self-esteem because every time I pushed through, I won against my inner weak.

It was just fun, no pressure

Growing up, I loved team sports very much. Sharing the experience with a team, win or lose, that was what I really loved. Actually, I liked the time spent training together, before and after matches, the getting together. However, I decided against soccer and took up tennis —an individual sport. I was quite talented and in the top 10 in my age category in Switzerland. My biggest achievement was probably that I played against Roger Federer, and lost 4-6, 4-6.

As tennis got more serious, the more support I received from my parents. They had to drive me everywhere and somehow I felt a bit too pressured. I could beat anyone in training but I couldn’t translate that into the real matches where it counts. In tennis, you need to be focused but also loose. I loved to play for fun, but if it was a competition I froze. I ended up quitting and my dad didn’t like it at first. My mum always supported me no matter what —she just wanted me to be happy. My dad did too, but he was more ambitious for me and I always felt the most pressure from him. I am not blaming him for being a bit harsh. At the time I did, but looking back it was a good lesson and I have to thank him now. I think my mum and my dad balanced each other out. I needed these opposite views. It made me realize that you have to be ambitious if you want to accomplish something, but never forget to enjoy the process.

After tennis, I started playing ice hockey as my passion was always the NHL. I played EA Sports PlayStation all day long. Sergei Fedorov and Steve Yzerman were my heroes. I started playing regularly with friends. I was only 16-17 at the time so they would pick me up and we would go play down at the rink. I felt like a grown up; not having to rely on my parents. The great thing about Dad was that he supported me playing ice hockey, which is not inexpensive, and I am really grateful for that support. And I loved to play. We played the lowest league and we barely won a game, but when we won it was like winning the Stanley Cup! It was just fun, no pressure. I loved it.

5 minutes before the start of a race my mind says,"I can't wait to be done and enjoy a cold one." I never really look forward to racing but once I am in, I love it.

I’ve won 11 Ironman races and still love my job like the first day

The first time I got in contact with triathlon was in San Diego in 2000. I was turning 21 and I did a language stay and met 2 Brazilian triathletes. They were working in a coffee shop in the morning and went training the rest of the day. I got hooked with the lifestyle and started training before my language classes would start. I'd do one hour of Spin and 40 minutes swimming, as the gym was at the top of a building with a pool on top. I felt like I finally found my sport. During that period I went to watch Ironman Hawaii and that was it!

I signed up for the Silver Strand Half Marathon and did it in 1:19. The night before, I went out with my Brazilian friends (which, by the way, are still my best buddies 17 years later) and I had a few too many drinks. I was so hungover, but I finished in a decent time. Back in Switzerland, I started doing duathlon as I couldn’t really swim that well. I made the national duathlon team in my first year.

I was still about 88kgs from my ice hockey days, but I guess my engine was also pretty big. People could not believe it and told me I had to lose a lot of weight. They just didn’t tell me how. I remember my first European U-23 Championships and the Swiss national coach told me before the race that I have to lose 15kgs, but with no strategy of how to do it. I’m glad it didn’t mess with my head too much, but I always had it in the back of my head. I couldn’t really get rid of the weight but somehow I wanted to prove everyone wrong. A big guy can’t run? I’ll show you how fast a big guy can run. Today, I weigh between 80-83kgs at 185cm, and my 10k best is 30:40. In endurance sports, the people are “a bit” indoctrinated, which makes it hard for a young ice hockey/tennis guy to not get messed up.

After learning to swim a bit, I did my first Ironman in 2003 —Ironman Florida. I placed 7th in my age bracket. After that, I got a contract and got into a team. 14 years later, I’ve won 11 Ironman races and still love my job like the first day.

"I think I learned that life is not changing much after a massive win and that the family, their health and friends are much more important than any race. It gave me perspective. The right one."

zero negative energy

I learned a lot about racing by trial and error but Stefan Riesen, a former duathlete, was my role model. I aspired to be him and he took me under his wing. I went to training camps and learned what it means to be a pro. The thing is he always had a good spirit about him. He trained hard but he was still always relaxed. He was so calm and it was a pleasure to be around him. Just zero negative energy. Amazing guy. He showed me you can still enjoy life, be funny and be successful. By the way, he won the famous Powerman Zofingen a few times.

Back to my tennis roots, I still think Roger Federer is the greatest sports star there ever was. How he played at such a high level over a long period of time is just not normal. What I like the most is that he is a star but does not act like one.

"I think that it is not always easy to be a partner or friend of a pro athlete, mostly because we are a bit self-centered. Although I don’t like it, we have to be a bit self-centered to be successful. So our partners and friends are sometimes a bit in the dark, which is never easy."

my body and i, we are a team

During a race, my inner voice says stop. But I’ve learned that every down period is going to pass and if you have the guts to tough it out, the up will come again. It’s true and easy. Once you know it, it’s just a waiting game. This sounds a bit funny but it’s true. At the beginning of my career, I didn’t know this.

The great thing about this sport is that you learn so much about yourself. You learn to stand up for yourself. You are on your own so you have to figure out how to come out of the lows. Positive thinking, of course, but for me, if I get into a real low I just let my body take control. I speak to my body. I try to listen and act accordingly. It works well for me. We are a team.

Footnotes

Words by Ronnie Schildknecht, Photos courtesy of Brakethrough Media, Korupt Vision and @ronnie.schildknecht, Editor Cody Royle, Published by NTSQ Sports

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FootNotes

Words by Ronnie Schildknecht, Photos courtesy of Brakethrough Media, Korupt Vision and @ronnie.schildknecht, Editor Cody Royle, Published by NTSQ Sports

Colin O'Brady

Ronnie Schildknecht

Mr Ironman Switzerland

FootNotes

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Season 3