Athletes pose with the Olympic rings during a media tour of the Olympic Village
Image: Keystone
Easy to recognize, the Swiss house in the Olympic Village
Image: Keystone
The ice baths are also ready for regeneration
Image: Keystone
"Rêvez vos exploits de demain" is written at the head of each bed (dream of your exploits of tomorrow)
Image: Keystone
The Swiss have made themselves comfortable on ten floors in their own refuge
Image: Keystone
The Swiss Olympic team in pictures
Image: Keystone
Children's drawings and messages from home hang on the first floor of the Ukrainian house
Image: Keystone
The canteen of the Olympic village behind fences
Image: Keystone
The Eiffel Tower in the distance
Image: Keystone
The Stade de France in the immediate vicinity of the Swiss accommodation
Image: Keystone
Badminton player Tobias Künzi shows off his retreat
Image: Keystone
Athletes pose with the Olympic rings during a media tour of the Olympic Village
Image: Keystone
Easy to recognize, the Swiss house in the Olympic Village
Image: Keystone
The ice baths are also ready for regeneration
Image: Keystone
"Rêvez vos exploits de demain" is written at the head of each bed (dream of your exploits of tomorrow)
Image: Keystone
The Swiss have made themselves comfortable on ten floors in their own refuge
Image: Keystone
The Swiss Olympic team in pictures
Image: Keystone
Children's drawings and messages from home hang on the first floor of the Ukrainian house
Image: Keystone
The canteen of the Olympic village behind fences
Image: Keystone
The Eiffel Tower in the distance
Image: Keystone
The Stade de France in the immediate vicinity of the Swiss accommodation
Image: Keystone
Badminton player Tobias Künzi shows off his retreat
Image: Keystone
During the Olympic Games, the athletes' village is the heart of the world's biggest sporting event. The Swiss delegation is guarded by two St. Bernards.
The Swiss win the first match of these Olympic Games with a clear knockout. The house with the many red flags clearly towers over the neighboring Austrian house. The view from the roof is fantastic, with the Stade de France almost within touching distance on one side and the Eiffel Tower in the distance on the other.
No strangers are allowed in here without an invitation, as two plush bernhardines guard the entrance. Barry has been the mascot since the highly successful games in Tokyo three years ago. The athletes like to take him along to their training sessions so that the lucky charm can be showcased in various places on social media.
Childhood illnesses, beach bar and beauty salon
The athletes want for nothing in the Olympic village. With a capacity of 3,200 seats, the huge Dining Hall is currently the largest restaurant in the world, the choice is huge, the crowds just as big and the queues sometimes long. Swiss delegation leader Ralph Stöckli calls this "teething troubles". If you want to work out, there are various fitness centers, a fencing hall, a supermarket, a large beauty salon and a café - the only place where short-term guests without accreditation for the Village can have a drink.
Outside of the two visiting days this week, the athletes and their coaches and support staff are among themselves. But when Rafael Nadal or Carlos Alcaraz walk past, even the sports stars become fans, pulling out their cell phones. A beach bar directly on the Seine, which flows through the Olympic village here in the northern Parisian suburb of Saint-Denis, invites you to linger. However, swimming is prohibited. A boat from the "Police Nationale" patrols the area, otherwise the security forces are very present, especially at the entrances. Those who belong to the illustrious circle and are inside the village can move around fairly carefree.
Spartan, but cool
In their own refuge, the Swiss have made themselves comfortable on ten floors. The residential units are rather spartan, luxury is a different story. But despite the summer heat outside and the lack of air conditioning, it is pleasantly cool. The thermometer in badminton player Tobias Künzi's room reads 22 degrees. "The cooling works somehow with liquids," says the man from Aargau.
Three to four bedrooms are grouped around a small lounge. The balcony also offers a wonderful view of the huge house of the US team, the plaza with the 206 flags of the participating nations or the shared accommodation of many Pacific countries. The Ukrainian house is impressive and depressing at the same time. Children's drawings and messages from home hang in the window on the first floor. "United We Stand For Ukraine" is the slogan.
The Swiss representatives will sleep more soundly than the representatives from the war-torn country. "Rêvez vos exploits de demain" is written at the head of each bed (made of cardboard and can be extended almost indefinitely). Dream of your exploits of tomorrow. The beds are very comfortable, assures Tobias Künzi. And he will actually need an exploit on Sunday. He starts his first Olympic Games against the world number 6 from China.
SDA
