25/03/2018 16:00
Remo Spahr – Fun and eclectic with lots of energy and a big heart
2018 CEV Snow Volleyball European Championship
Wagrain-Kleinarl, Austria, March 25, 2018. Many of the players competing at the inaugural #EuroSnowVolley in Wagrain-Kleinarl have an interesting story to tell, but Remo Spahr of Switzerland is somehow one of a kind. Spahr and partner Raphael Zurgilgen finished the competition in the Austrian Alps in ninth place – but Spahr is such an interesting character to know.
The 23-year-old Swiss plays Volleyball, Beach Volleyball and Snow Volleyball – and on top of this, American Football as well. “Even though I played my first official Snow Volleyball tournament last year in Liechtenstein, my first experience with this game came eight years ago in Engelberg,” Spahr reveals. “Of course, that was just for fun and almost for the same reason last year I decided to play in Malbun together with a friend of mine.”
Spahr is truly eclectic and it is interesting to understand how he can combine so many different sports. “I have been playing American Football since last summer and am training about two to three times a week. We train and play outdoors, even during the winter season, so this definitely helps for Snow Volleyball as well, since my body and muscles are used to cold and chilly conditions. I am missing the first match of the season this weekend, but our participation in the first Snow Volleyball European Championship here in Wagrain is an invaluable experience,” he continues.
After playing in Näfels, one of Switzerland’s Volleyball ‘Meccas’, Spahr decided he would focus solely on Beach Volleyball – and Snow Volleyball during the winter, of course. Together with Zurgilgen, they contested a number of tournaments on the 2018 European Tour, travelling to Italy, Slovenia and Turkey as well. However, they briefly split for the first Swiss Snow Volleyball national championship held back in February. “We thought that even though we were playing with different partners, we would still qualify for the #EuroSnowVolley through the ranking and were confident that one or the other would have won that competition, but we ended up losing in the semi (myself) and in the final (Raphael) to Sébastien Chevallier and Alexei Strasser.”
Spahr has an incredibly busy daily routine: “Actually, I sleep five hours per night and I feel so full of energy that I have to find a way to release it somehow. That is why I have been practicing so many different sports. As for American Football, they coaches liked the fact that I am fast and explosive, and you need such qualities when playing that game. I have tried skeleton as well in Igls, a track near Innsbruck, and recorded such a good time that I ended up playing the role of forerunner for a competition they were hosting there. My grandfather used to coach the skeleton Swiss national team and he has attended the Winter Olympics as well, being responsible for checking the blades. I may try even bobsleighing as well next year, we will see.”
Remo runs a dermatology surgery back home in Switzerland and as much as he likes flexing his biceps, he has a big heart as well. On Thursday, when Wagrain hosted a Kids Day with participation of more than 400 children from local schools, he spontaneously joined the clinic. “Raphael and I had come to the venue of the tournament as we wanted to train a little bit more before the start of the competition, but as soon as I realised that so many kids were around, I decided we would use our time differently. These children are tomorrow’s future players and if we can pass on to them some of our skills and knowledge, that is probably the best investment we can make,” he concludes.
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