by Oliver Trust
BERLIN, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- Switzerland, better known for winter sports, is celebrating an unprecedented 100m hurdles gold after Ditaji Kambundji's triumph at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.
The 23-year-old has electrified her country of nearly nine million people, winning Switzerland's first-ever gold in the event and lifting athletics to new prominence.
"The screams of her sisters must have been heard until the Japanese capital," the Swiss tabloid Blick wrote, calling the victory a sensation.
Kambundji follows in the footsteps of compatriots Andre Bucher, the 800m world champion in 2001, and three-time shot put gold medalist Werner Gunthor (1987, 1991, 1993). Her victory also highlights the remarkable journey of a family long devoted to athletics.
Her father, Safuka, moving from the Democratic Republic of Congo to Switzerland over 40 years ago to study at university, and her mother Ruth as well as aunt Edith Nafzer were in the stands in Tokyo celebrating with tears of joy.
"Other than daddy, I wasn't predicting this would happen," Ruth said. Ditaji herself admitted: "I've never wept that many tears of joy in my life."
Raised in Bern, the sisters spent much of their childhood on their aunt's farm, with the three older siblings taking the youngest to competitions. "I was hooked on athletics from the first day," Ditaji said.
Her talent has now surpassed even that of her sister Mujinga, who won 60m gold at the 2022 World Indoor Championships and took European titles in the 100m and 200m. Ditaji also became the first European to win the women's 100m hurdles world title since 1997.
Gunthor, the shot put great, jokingly suggested she should be crowned Switzerland's first athletics "queen."
Her winning time of 12.24 seconds set a new national record and provided a rare golden moment for a nation more accustomed to celebrating skiing champions.
At 23, expectations are high for more to come, though Kambundji says she needs time to absorb the achievement. Back home, her club ST Bern hopes her historic medal will inspire the next generation.
TV broadcasters are preparing extensive coverage for the family's return from Asia, as the nation prepares to welcome home its new star. ■
