Catherine Debrunner facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Catherine Debrunner

Training von Catherine Debrunner in Nottwil
Personal information
Nationality	Switzerland
Born	(1995-04-11) 11 April 1995 (age 30) Mettendorf TG
Education	Thurgau University of Education
Sport
Disability class	T53
Club	Red Velvet Racing Team
Coached by	Arno Mul
Medal record Women's para-athletics Representing  Switzerland Paralympic Games Gold 2020 Tokyo 400 m T53 Gold 2024 Paris 400 m T53 Gold 2024 Paris 800 m T53 Gold 2024 Paris 1500 m T54 Gold 2024 Paris 5000 m T54 Gold 2024 Paris Marathon T54 Silver 2024 Paris 100 m T53 Bronze 2020 Tokyo 800 m T53 World Championships Gold 2019 Dubai 400m T53 Gold 2023 Paris 5000m T54 Gold 2023 Paris 400m T53 Gold 2023 Paris 800m T53 Gold 2023 Paris 1500m T54 Silver 2015 Doha 200m T53 Silver 2019 Dubai 800m T53 Silver 2023 Paris 100m T53 World Marathon Majors Gold Tokyo Marathon 2025 Gold London Marathon 2022, 2024,2025 Gold Berlin Marathon 2022, 2023, 2024 Gold Chicago Marathon 2023–2024 Gold New York City Marathon 2023 Bronze London Marathon 2023 Silver Boston Marathon 2025

Catherine Debrunner (born April 11, 1995) is a famous Swiss athlete. She competes in wheelchair racing, specifically in the T53 category. This means she has good arm and hand function but limited or no trunk and leg movement.

Catherine has won many medals in her career. She earned five gold medals at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris. One of these was for the T54 Marathon. She has also won ten World Marathon Majors races since her first marathon in 2022. Catherine has been part of Team Switzerland since 2008. She has won many medals at World and European Championships, as well as at the Paralympics.

Early Life and Start in Sports

Catherine Debrunner was born on April 11, 1995, in Mettendorf, Switzerland. She uses a wheelchair because of a birth defect in her spine.

When she was younger, Catherine went to a sports camp in Nottwil. There, she met Paul Odermatt, who became her first coach. Since 2021, Arno Mul from the Netherlands has been her coach.

Track Racing Career

Catherine started her international career at the IWAS World Youth Games in New Jersey in 2008. She won five gold medals there. She was also given an award for being an "Athlete with International Potential."

Her first big international competition as a senior athlete was the 2013 IPC Athletics World Championships in Lyon. She won her first World Championship medal in 2015. This was a silver medal in the T53 200 metres race.

Catherine competed at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio. She finished seventh in the Women's 400 metres race. After this, she took a break from sports to focus on her studies.

She returned to Team Switzerland for the 2019 World Para Athletics Championships in Dubai. There, she won a gold medal in the Women's 400m T53. She also earned a silver medal in the women's 800m T53 race.

At the 2023 World Para Athletics Championships, Catherine had an amazing performance. She won four gold medals in the 400m, 800m, 1500m, and 5000m races. She also took home a silver medal, finishing second behind Sammi Kinghorn.

Catherine won her first Paralympic medal at the 2020 Tokyo Games. She earned a bronze medal in the Women's 800 metres T53. Her first Paralympic gold medal came in the Women's 400 metres T53 race at the same games. She beat Samantha Kinghorn and Zhou Hongzhuan to win.

At the 2024 Paralympics in Paris, Catherine was incredibly successful. She won five gold medals and one silver medal. One of her gold medals was for the T54 Marathon, which she led from start to finish. Madison de Rozario from Australia came second, and Susannah Scaroni from America won the bronze medal.

Road Racing Career

In 2022, the World Championships were cancelled. Catherine decided to try a new challenge: marathons. She focused on road races for the rest of that year.

She competed in her very first marathon at the 2022 Berlin Marathon. Catherine won the race, finishing in 1 hour, 36 minutes, and 47 seconds. She broke Manuela Schär's winning streak at the Berlin Marathon. Just one week later, Catherine also won the 2022 London Marathon.

In 2023, Catherine set a new world record at the 2023 Berlin Marathon. Her time was 1 hour, 34 minutes, and 16 seconds. She also raced in the United States for the first time at the 2023 Chicago Marathon in October. She set a new course record there with a time of 1 hour, 38 minutes, and 44 seconds. Catherine also won the 2023 New York City Marathon, setting another course record with a time of 1 hour, 39 minutes, and 32 seconds.

In 2024, she continued her winning streak. She won the 2024 London Marathon, the 2024 Berlin Marathon, and the 2024 Chicago Marathon.

In 2025, Catherine won the 2025 Tokyo Marathon and the 2025 London Marathon. She also finished second in the 2025 Boston Marathon, behind Susannah Scaroni.

Catherine won the overall ranking in the World Marathon Majors in both 2023 and 2024.

She holds nine World Para Athletics (WPA) world records. On the track, she holds records for the 100m T53, 200m T53, 400m T53, 800m T53, 1500m T53/T54, and 5000m T53/T54. For road races, she holds world records in the 10k, half marathon, and marathon.

Laureus World Sports Award

In May 2023, Catherine Debrunner received a very special award. She was named the Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability. This award recognizes the best athletes with disabilities in the world. She was also nominated for this award again in 2025.

Personal Best Times

Catherine Debrunner has achieved impressive personal best times in her races:

World record