"Just one more 'medium train' and I'll be at the finish line"
Christian Sommer is slowly getting back into training after his fantastic Zurich Marathon. A leisurely run with his son Ken is already back on the cards.
Christian Sommer is not only fast on the Zugerberg Finanz Trophy courses. The Sunday before last, he crossed the finish line at the Zurich Marathon in 2:30:38 hours! Here, the 41-year-old talks about his passion.
Christian Sommer's running adventures began in 2006, also at the Zurich Marathon. Back then, it took him almost an hour longer to complete the 42.2 km. "A fellow student motivated me back then, and then I was hooked," says the family man, who lived abroad for a long time, including in Japan. "Great things happened there in 2009. I was the first - and to my knowledge the only - European to take part in a qualifying race for the traditional 'Hakone Ekiden', a competition between universities." Although it wasn't enough for him to take part, the experience remains unforgettable, says Sommer.
The competition motivates
When he and his family moved back to Switzerland in 2020, Christian happened to see the Zugerberg Finanz Trophy timing device at the athletics stadium. "I asked how it worked and then tried out the long stage via Cham, Steinhausen and Blickensdorf," says the passionate runner, "I got lost the first time because I didn't realize that there were ground markings as well as signposts. On my second attempt, I reached the finish on the right path and since then I have been training regularly on the Trophy routes." For him, the signposted laps are perfect for running the fast training sessions at the right intensity, also because of the "competition", as Christian reveals: "The competition with Philipp Arnold, Stefan Bossert and the other fast runners motivates me a lot and has definitely helped me progress. I also found it great to get to know new routes."
The children also run the trophy
The marathon in Zurich was also the big goal. Accordingly, Christian has done a lot of preparation for the Trophy since the "pre-start". The open routes due to the anniversary suited him very well. "I ran the routes at marathon pace as part of long runs. For example, I ran 'medium train' three times and so I motivated myself in the competition at kilometer 35 with 'just one more medium train, then I'll be at the finish line'." He ran there at an incredibly fast pace of 3:34 minutes per kilometer. Now it's time to recover and then he is looking forward to the stage in Baar, which he will certainly run at a more leisurely pace with his sons Ken (12) and Leon (9).
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