His house, says Martin Strupler, was quite easy to find: “Search for the swimming pool in the garden.”

Monday morning, 9 o’clock, day 1 of a new era in Bern. Since Sunday, it is clear that the city gets a 50-Meter indoor swimming pool, the first between Montreux and Sursee. 85 percent of the population have agreed to the 75-million-franc project.

Sounds like a clear thing. But that is deceptive. For this you have to have a talk with Martin Strupler. Martin is the son of Ernst Strupler, born in 1918, a legend of the Swiss sport: Olympian in the water, jumping, head of the Zurich Sportamts, the founder and longtime Director of the Institute for sports Sciences of the University of Bern. Ernst Strupler came from competitive sports, his heart was wide: He called for mandatory physical education in vocational schools, as the many thought, and for a crazy idea, drove the construction of sports facilities, wanted free use for all.

But his greatest dream was, until his death in 2015, will be fulfilled. His son remembers a tribute in an evening of anointing were full of words about Ernst Strupler low. The Celebrated but sat with her eyes cast down on his chair, and muttered: “The indoor swimming pool you have denied me anyway.”

Martin Strupler was 16 years of age, when he was admitted in 1968 to the national team of the water knight. Photo: Adrian Moser

The history of this desire is linked to a half-century old and just as closely with the old as with the young Strupler. Martin Strupler was 16 years of age, when he was admitted in 1968 to the national team of the water knight. With a location disadvantage: There was no jump tower. His father was also his coach, assured him that Bern will have in a few years, a real pool hall. With a 50-Meter pool, a diving tower, all the trappings.

It took a little longer. But why? The answer reads like a democratic political textbook example.

Today, no one can say with certainty how many projects have failed since the 60s. But all say: The most Sisto Salera know know, a former owner of an architectural firm, a long standing Board member of the Swiss swimming Federation.

Nine times, no.

The question of whether he was to speak, reached Salera on a cruise ship off the Azores. He was over eighty years old, he writes, from the head, nine projects came to him, “where I was involved in eight of them”. He quickly counts, “I hope that the Mail via satellite goes out”: The municipal baths concept in the ’60s, a private initiative in the’ 70s, competitions in the 80s. And so on. In the picture, under the monbijou bridge, in the Wankdorf, and there are few spots that was not taken into consideration.

The project, the most flourished, was that in the 90s. Project Author: Sisto Salera. Closely, the young Strupler involved: as the head of the cantonal Sportamts. The idea: a 45-million-franc building on the white stone area, with gyms, Quartier restaurant, children’s Playground. It was all there, and all wanted to it, in the patronage Committee of the national councils, and both the Bernese Ständeräte sat. But one of them had something of an Emmentaler.

“In Bern, they called me the “dragon Slayer from the Emmental”.”Christian Waber, Alt-Nationalrat, the EDU

call to Christian Waber, Alt-national Council of EDU, fundamental Christian. During his Federal time in the 2000s, in Switzerland became known for his fight against homosexuality and DJ Bobo’s Song “Vampires Are Alive”. Waber laughs loudly as he sees what it is. “That’s exactly how it was,” he says. “In Bern, they called me the “dragon Slayer from the Emmental”.”

the next day, in a Café. The documents of the time, Christian Waber, 71, has-year-old, shredded, as he moved with his wife recently, from Wasen to Lützelflüh, “closer to the center”. But the memory of the 90s is fresh. How could he forget this story ever! The swimming centre was a done deal, the cantonal Parliament with an overwhelming majority.

But in the spring of 1997 Waber took the Referendum, against the will of all the parties, not even his EDU want to help. Him for two things: the location and the construction and maintenance costs were too deep to disturb. “I saw everyone, that stinks,” he says.

One against all

The proponents of the project saw it naturally, otherwise, the people in this “sport clans”, such as Waber she calls. He had been vilified as a layman, as “peasants from the Emmental”, “would have me hunted down like the most of the city”. But he turned to you, on podiums, in the Newspapers, stoically he endured the attacks. His parents had been officers of the salvation army, even in the case of school visits, they wore the Uniform, the laughter of the class of comrades toughened Waber.

More than 100’000 francs to the vote fight him and his few supporters had cost, he found a hearing from the country’s population, which had, until then, barely thinking about the project. The people were disturbed by the cost: What is the advantage of the build in the town of a bathroom?

In the autumn of 1997, said a narrow majority no. Strupler, Salera, and friends were stunned. They had lost against, you wouldn’t have known months before.

One thought: The wars. A 50-Meter indoor swimming pool in Bern? Decades of hopeless. A failure of democracy.

But then happened something Amazing: in 2010, the then municipal Councilor Edith Olibet had a sports and movement concept. Sounds dry. But it seemed to be. Because the claim was captured suddenly officially: Bern needs a 50-Meter swimming pool. As quickly as possible. Also, because the 25-metre indoor pools are in need of remediation.

The planned new building in Berne Neufeld. Visualisation: Nightnurse

That was remarkable for two reasons. Firstly, because it was an admission of policy. For too long they had not supported the voluntary commitment of Strupler, Salera and others-is sufficient. And secondly, because a change of direction announced, a lesson from the defeats in 1985 and 1997. The new swimming pool would be a municipal project, not a cantonal, so would also just decide the city’s population about it.

As a former volleyball players, Christian Bigler, 2012, the head of the municipal Sportamts, he was the fresh Wind that the project is needed. Bigler knew, this time, no mistakes are allowed to happen. Last Chance. First of all, you investigated the need for water, by expecting everything twice and three times. With the result that Bern twenty additional 25-Meter-requires Railways to meet the demand for water.

Or ten 50-Meter lanes. For People Children’s Swimming Classes, Sports Clubs, Swimming,. In this order. That was were the second lesson from the low that not even the impression, the bathroom will only be built for the power sport. Although it is dependent on: All the major national and international competitions are held in 50-Meter pools.

Finally

Monday morning, 9 o’clock. Martin Strupler sitting at the kitchen table in front of him, a half-century history: a folder, project papers, portfolios. The main blame for the Failure of previous submissions it is the policy. You have brakes, volunteer initiatives, and volunteering is not appreciated. “I think, slowly, people understand that sport is important for social, personal, health-related aspects.” It is the Mantra of his father.

He has kept them all, the efforts of his father, as well as their own. Already as a student of architecture at the ETH Zurich, he has deals with sports equipment, in his diploma thesis in 1980, he went after the question of where it has areas in the dense Bern space for Leisure.

His answer was: the North of the city. So where now, indeed, the hall is built, in Neufeld. But not exactly as Strupler you outlined, a little less generous, a little less performance, sports-oriented, without a coat to use. “But who would I be, if I were that big of a deal,” he says.

Created: 19.11.2019, 22:52 PM