Interviews
We believe that the truth is best told by real life stories. Therefore, in this segment, we introduce you to a variety of athletes that talk about their time in the United States.
Ymke Brouwer
Ymke Brouwer (21) from Zurich is one of just a few Swiss basketball players competing in the NCAA Division 1, the most competitive college league.
She began her basketball career with GC Zürich Ladies Wildcats before moving to BC Winterthur in 2019 to play in Switzerland's division, the SB League Women. She has been a student-athlete at the prestigious Penn State University in Pennsylvania since August 2021. The athletic scholarship from Penn State allows her to further play Basketball at the highest level while getting a university degree.
In the exclusive interview with UNISPORTS, Ymke speaks about her life in the United States, how she got there and her goals on and off the basketball court.
Daniel Valent
Daniel is one of the most successful Swiss tennis players with a college tennis past. He is a 4-time Swiss Junior Champion, participated in Junior Grand Slam Tournaments and won the Ohio Valley Regional Tournament, which resulted in the qualification for the ATP Masters in Indian Wells.
Daniel played for Vanderbilt University, a university in Tennessee, that competes as a Division 1 team in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) against Florida, Texas A&M, Louisiana State, Alabama, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Georgia, Kentucky, and South Carolina.
In the exclusive interview with UNISPORTS, Daniel gives insights about his life as a student athlete in the United States and why he thinks that college sports is a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Nicole Jaquemet
Nicole made her debut in the National League A at the age of 15 with the women's team of FC Zurich. As a starter Nicole was able to celebrate the Swiss championship title three times and qualified with the Swiss junior selections for several finals of the European and World Championships.
After completing her education at the Kunst- und Sport-gymnasium Rämibühl, Nicole found her next challenge in the south of the USA. Nicole played for Louisiana Tech University, a university that is competing in the Conference USA as a Division 1 team.
In the exclusive interview with UNISPORTS, Nicole talks about her experiences, how women's football differs in the USA and what she remembers the most.
Martina Tresch
Martina is one of the most well-known Swiss long distance runners of the last few years. Between 2009 and 2013 she competed for the Kansas State University Track and Cross Country team and made the top 10 at the NCAA Track & Field Championships twice.
At the 2011 European Under-23 Championships in Ostrava, she finished fifth in the 3000-meter Steeple with a new Swiss record (9:51.96 min). She also has personal best times of 4:22 (1500m), 9:24 (3000m), 16:28 (5000m) and 33:38 (10,000m).
Since finishing her studies and returning to Switzerland, Martina is more likely to be seen on the longer distances and made her marathon debut in 2019.
Tiffany Arafi
Tiffany has won several amateur titles as junior player of the year 2016 and was allowed to represent Switzerland at the European Championships. In addition, Tiffany has already been able to show her skills at several professional tournaments.
After attending Montverde High School in Florida and the intensive golf program at the Gary Gilchrist Academy, Tiffany was able to recommend herself for a full scholarship to Coastal Carolina University, where she has been studying sport & recreation management since 2018.
In the interview with UNISPORTS, Tiffany talks about her reasons for coming to the USA, her plans to become a professional athlete and why she thinks one should be brave enough to go to the USA.
Alina Müller
Alina, who is 24 years old, competed in her third Olympics this year and is the youngest ice hockey player to ever win an Olympic medal.
Alina has been a student at Northeastern University in Boston since 2018 and is captain of the Ice Hockey Team. The Northeastern Huskies play in the Hockey East Conference and Alina's team has been able to participate in the prestigious Frozen Four tournament several times in recent years.
In the exclusive interview with UNISPORTS, Alina talks about her life as a "student athlete" in the United States and why she would recommend college sports to other ice hockey athletes in a heartbeat.
Andrin Gulich
The 22-year-old Andrin is on the verge of his career highlight so far – the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Most recently, he was able to represent the Swiss coxless four at the European Rowing Championships in Varese. Together with Joel Schürch, Paul Jacquot and Markus Kessler, they missed the qualification for the A-final by only 4 hundredths. This race was however only to be seen as an assessment before the season's highlight, the Olympic Games.
In an exclusive interview with UNISPORTS, Andrin shares insights into his life as a "student athlete" in the United States and why he believes college sports is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for rowers.