Stefan Strebel will be assigning the pairings in the 1st course for the last time at the Swiss Wrestling Festival in Mollis. The retiring Federal Technical Director talks about favorites and rematches. And he reveals what he has in common with Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
21.08.2025, 17:10
21.08.2025, 17:18
SDA
Stefan Strebel, everyone is looking towards Mollis at the end of August. As Federal Technical Director at the ESAF, you will be responsible for organizing the 1st course. Will you be pulling any surprising pairings out of your hat again?
Stefan Strebel: I don't make a pairing just because it hasn't happened for six years. I've never worked like that before, I find it boring. It's no secret that I'm a proponent of rematches, and there will be some this year too.
I've already said things like: 'The course isn't ready for me yet' - when neither of the two wrestlers has taken a risk, for example. Or when certain gaits have ended very quickly, such as Staudenmann against Wicki.
Then I just do this pairing again. Especially at the Swiss Confederation, where they have to show something. Because none of the king candidates want to start with minus 1.25 points. That's why I love the first course.
So it comes down to Staudenmann versus Wicki?
No. I'm sure you understand that I can't tell you the first course. There are five or six interesting candidates this year.
Who do you have on your list?
Michael Moser, for example. Because he hasn't yet won a federal crown, discussions are inevitable. But Stefan Strebel is just as interested in that (puts thumb and index finger close together). Swing experts will complain that he shouldn't be paired with this or that. But Moser is free for me.
Who else is the king candidate?
Joel Wicki has to be on the list. He's already king and has performed well since Pratteln. Giger, Orlik, Walther, Staudenmann. These are all top wrestlers who could be let loose on each other without batting an eyelid. And yet all of them have already lost this year. They simply have to be exciting fights, especially in first gear. There has to be discussion in the days leading up to the festival. That is my goal.
Do you rack your brains over the top pairings weeks in advance?
I've already attended 14 wrestling festivals this year, always taking notes (pulls out his smartphone). At some point, I take these notes, sit down and make a list. It takes me 90 minutes twice to do all the pairings.
How can you imagine that?
A few weeks ago, I sat down on a Saturday evening with a blank sheet of paper in front of me. I wrote down ten pairings and then put the sheet back in the drawer. They were extreme pairings. At the time I wrote them down, any expert would have said: 'Strebel's crazy! But in view of the development of certain wrestlers, it became clear that the pairings were not so wrong.
In 2022, there were several top wrestlers who were questionable for the season highlight, above all wrestling king Christian Stucki. This year, the biggest names are all fit. Does that make your job easier?
Absolutely. In the case of Stucki, people were trembling until Wednesday: will he come or won't he? There was a plan B back then. I don't need that this year because all the top wrestlers are fit.
From the top to the bottom: the Federal Office of Sport has announced that it will cut subsidies for youth and sport (Y+S) by a fifth from 2026. What impact would this have on the sport of wrestling?
That would be a disaster, but we would only really feel the effects in the future. Cuts are always negative, but even more serious in the area of young talent. Sport is about health, and that should be worth something. I think it's wrong to make cuts there, but I'm sure that the last word has not yet been spoken.
You were at the top yourself as an active athlete and are a three-time Swiss champion (1998, 2001, 2004 - editor's note). Did you get upset about divisions during your active career?
Yes, of course, because I didn't understand them. I also got upset about judges and scoring. But sometimes it's not that easy. In recent years, there has also been media interest, which has opened up new opportunities for spectators and athletes alike - I'm not taking myself out of that
At the Bernese Cantonal Championships, I picked up the phone after a controversial judges' decision and called my son. He looked at the course again for me and confirmed my view of things.
Four years ago, you brought a video referee into the game. That didn't go down well.
In the refereeing commission, 97 percent were against it. That was the end of the matter for me. Because democracy prevails in the sport of wrestling, even if I sometimes shout at the front.
Stefan Strebel, let's take a look back at your career as an official: you have been Technical Director of the Swiss Wrestling Federation since 2020. Before that, you worked for the Northwestern Switzerland Association for 15 years. What has changed in wrestling during your 20 years as an official?
Everything has become more transparent - I think that's great. Wrestling festivals have become public festivals, everyone has a say - that's great too. In the past, when I was still a boy, you almost had to be ashamed to say that you were a wrestler. Today, wrestlers are respected. Everything has become more professional, the training, the conditions. I think we will soon have reached the peak.
Do you have an explanation for why wrestling has become so popular?
Peacefulness plays a major role. Visitors don't have to worry about their safety. I've been to a cup final and a stone came down next to me. I don't go there anymore.
You are a football fan, have a season ticket with the German Bundesliga club Freiburg and once named Zlatan Ibrahimovic as a role model. What fascinates you about the Swede?
He had a certain toughness and straightforwardness, he stood up and led the way. I liked his unconventional style of play, his courage to shoot from 40 meters. He always had a clear opinion. And he loved revenge, he didn't let anything get to him when he got hit.
Ibrahimovic polarized, you are also a man of clear words. How did that go down in the wrestling family, which is considered conservative?
The sport of wrestling is not as conservative as you all think. The word conservative has negative connotations, I don't like that. We've taken big steps in recent years, so we've been the opposite of conservative, so to speak. You'd have to ask my colleagues how I got on.
Of course it wasn't always harmonious. But we always found a consensus. I never avoided issues and never swept them under the carpet. Whenever a nasty letter arrived and the sender was on it, I picked up the phone, called and explained my point of view in a decent manner. You can also hold office without polarizing. But that was never my thing.
Ibrahimovic always saw himself as the god of football. Do you see yourself on a similar level in wrestling?
(laughs) I don't see myself as a god at all. Certain media headlines referred to me as a 'wrestling boss', and I could live with that. That's also easier to write than Federal Technical Director (smiles). But basically, I'm just the second-highest-ranking wrestler.
You could have become the highest-ranking wrestler, but you withdrew your candidacy for the position of chairman because there was an opposing candidate, Guido Sturny from the Southwestern Swiss Association.
As technical director, you are in the public eye, have to make decisions and don't just make friends. People from Bern, Central Switzerland and Eastern Switzerland sometimes felt disadvantaged when it came to the divisions. They could have made me feel that in a competitive election.
Some people were surprised, because my character is that of a fighter who doesn't shy away from anything. But I shied away from that. I didn't want to do that to myself after such a long time in the association, so I said to myself: now is the time.
After the ESAF in Mollis, you will be stepping down from your position as Federal Technical Director. What are your final wishes?
That the two right wrestlers are in the final round, that we have a king and don't have to discuss a first-time winner. I also want the federal crowns to be cleanly distributed. Those are my goals.
