At OYM College (OYMC) in Cham, everything revolves around the needs of young top athletes. The partnership with AMAG helps to prepare young people not only for competitive sport, but also for a sustainable professional future.
One of the most state-of-the-art sports centres in the world can be found in the heart of central Switzerland. At the On Your Marks (OYM) performance centre in Cham, athletes can enjoy the ideal training, rehabilitation and nutritional conditions to achieve top performance. But OYM is not just about athletic development: OYM College offers around 110 young talents from various disciplines the opportunity to complete their “Matura”, the Swiss higher school-leaving certificate, or commercial vocational training without removing them from their sporting environment.
“We see ourselves as a sort of Sports Academy 4.0,” says Managing Director Benno Sidler. He explains what this means over coffee in the lounge of the stylish OYM restaurant. “We were able to create the OYMC from scratch and there was no need to take any existing structures into consideration.” This is reflected in the open-plan design of the rooms and in the flexible approach to teaching. The next statement by Sidler is further proof that everything is a bit different at OYMC: “Here, everyone has a right to unequal treatment.” Say what? The school principal laughs. “A lot of schools attach a great deal of importance to everyone and everything being the same. We, on the other hand, focus on the individual needs of our students.” After all: an ice hockey player has different needs than a track and field athlete or a bobsledder. If for no other reason, this is because training and competition times vary greatly depending on the sport. Vocational training at OYMC adapts to the sporting calendar, not the other way round.
Another key point: OYMC is structured in such a way that students can learn regardless of their location – personal responsibility is a top priority. The students sometimes work from home, from their training camp – or if need be, even from the team bus after an away game. “OYMC is and remains the best place to learn,” emphasises the Managing Director. However: Instead of chalk and talk teaching, OYMC places emphasis on interdisciplinary skills. Teachers, referred to as learning coaches, play an important role in this process. Computer science teacher Beni Füglister is one of them. Like his pupils, he also has an elite sporting background; he once played handball at the very highest Swiss echelons. “An open mind is more important than a sporting background,” he says. Füglister is very enthusiastic about the special environment, which he describes as “dispensing with rigid structures”. And he is full of praise for his students, who are naturally focused and disciplined. But of course: sometimes even OYMC students turn up for lessons looking a bit tired. Not, however, because they spent too much time on their mobile phones the evening before, but because they already completed a training session at seven in the morning.
Benno Sidler and his team attach particular importance to the long-term development of their protégés. This is also because not everyone makes the leap into the ranks of professional sport. “We celebrate every medal – but sporting success doesn’t define our relationship with the young people.” It’s ok to fail, too. “In fact, it is particularly valuable for an individual’s development,” says Sidler. This is why long-term development also involves preparing young people for life after their sporting careers have come to an end. The Managing Director is convinced that OYMC graduates have the best possible foundation to build on.
– Benno Sidler
This includes how to focus, develop resilience and work well as part of a team – and, of course, the ability to handle success and failure. All of these aspects were among the motivating factors for the AMAG Group to become involved in OYMC as part of the AMAG Engage sustainability goal.
The strategic partnership between AMAG and OYMC was established back in 2019. “The collaboration enables us to optimise our day-to-day operations and, at the same time, do our bit to reduce our environmental impact,” emphasises Benno Sidler. OYMC employees have a total of five electric vehicles from AMAG at their disposal. “It was clear to us from the outset that, as an innovative school, we also wanted to focus on the future when choosing the types of vehicles we wanted to drive,” says Benno Sidler. He knows that mobility is also a big issue for young people. “This makes it all the more important for us to set a good example in this area. Furthermore, the attractive vehicles, which feature our logo, give our school visibility and an innovative, sustainable image.” However, AMAG not only provides OYMC with cars – the company is also involved as a vocational training partner. For example, young people who undergo commercial vocational training at OYM College complete regular internships at the company (see interview). This allows the AMAG Group to offer the athletes valuable hands-on experience in a dynamic business environment.
Siro Schwitter plays as a centre for the ice hockey team EV Zug’s under-20s elite team. The 19-year-old is in his fourth year of vocational training at OYM College and is currently completing a one-year internship at AMAG Gruppe AG in Cham.
Siro: Both my father and my older brother played at a high level – so I practically grew up at the ice rink (laughs). When I made my début with EHC Seewen at the age of four or five, I was hooked right away. A few years back, I was then given the opportunity to join the EVZ juniors.
Ice hockey is one of the fastest team sports around. I also just love being able to achieve something on the ice together with my teammates.
Of course, that’s every player’s dream. But I want to gain a foothold in this country first. My big goal is to be able to start a professional career in Switzerland.
No, it’s very important to me to have a plan B. Vocational training is just as important to me as sport. That’s something my parents really instilled in me.
OYMC offers me the ideal structures and prospects to advance my sporting and professional careers in tandem with each other. I usually start the day early in the morning with a training session, then I go to school or work before training again in the afternoon. This sort of routine would be impossible as part of a normal apprenticeship.
I commute from Seewen to Cham on public transport every single day. And I’ve also passed my driving test already. What I particularly like about AMAG is the opportunity to gain an insight into different departments as an apprentice. After six months in the HR department, I can now gain experience in VW Marketing. At AMAG, you are challenged and supported.
– Siro Schwitter
Major changes are certainly under way. This change, and AMAG’s leading role in this area, is something we can really sense in our day-to-day work as well. I’ve already had the chance to test drive an electric model myself and I was pretty impressed.
Thank you, Siro. Safe travels and best of luck in the ice rink in the future!
