Foto: athle.ch

Matthias Kyburz is one of the most successful orienteers in history. He has won 25 World Cup races, claimed the overall World Cup title six times between 2012 and 2023, and is also a nine-time European champion and eight-time world champion. In 2024, he decided to try his hand at marathon running. At his spectacular début, he immediately qualified for the Olympic Games with a time of 2:07:44, finishing 30th in the Olympic marathon. At his third marathon in 2025 in Seville, the 35-year-old clocked a new personal best of 2:06:48, making him the second-fastest Swiss marathon runner of all time behind Tadesse Abraham.

2026 goals

The main goal this year is the marathon at the European Championships in Birmingham on 16 August. In addition, I plan to tackle the 42.195 kilometres on two more occasions. One will be a marathon in Europe in April, and towards the end of the year New York City or Valencia could again be an option. I will make my final decision after the European Championships.

Winter training

As in previous years, my winter training is being carried out from home and, apart from a few exceptions on cross-country skis, I train exclusively on foot. The focus is on base work with around 180 kilometres per week, plenty of steady runs, classic interval sessions, long runs and strength training. I believe the key to success lies in continuity and honest work over many weeks. For this reason – and because the family situation does not allow it – I am also foregoing a high-altitude training camp in Kenya or South Africa.

Everyday training 

Compared to my time in orienteering, my daily training as a marathon runner is relatively monotonous. I complete roughly the same number of training hours, but run more kilometres with fewer metres of elevation. I now only go to the gym once a week and run at lower intensities in the three hard sessions, as there are no longer any lactate peaks in marathon running, and no longer train in alternative sports. A typical training week looks like this:

• Monday: two easy runs and core strength training, 30 km
• Tuesday: longer interval session, 25 km
• Wednesday: steady run, 20 km
• Thursday: hard session with hill sprints plus a steady run and leg strength training in the gym, 25 km
• Friday: two easy runs, 25–30 km
• Saturday: long run, 30–35 km
• Sunday: two easy runs and core strength training, 20–25 km 

I also pay close attention to getting enough sleep, which I see as the most important recovery measure. In addition, it is important to eat and drink something right after training.

Training philosophy

Success is the result of long-term, consistent work.

My strength

My two greatest strengths are definitely my robustness and my determination. Both are fundamental prerequisites for success. They allow me to maintain training over long periods without interruption and to push myself to the limit in competition. 

My weakness

My strength is also one of my weaknesses: sometimes less would be more, and a bit more composure would be better than wanting to always give 100 per cent – or even more. I am also certainly not the most proactive when it comes to trying out something new. I prefer to stick to the motto: “Never change a running system.”

Challenges in competition

The biggest challenge in the marathon is pacing. Compared to orienteering, everything is more predictable, and thanks to months of preparation I can estimate whether a time between 2:06 and 2:08 is possible. However, how I need to behave during the race so that it all comes together in the final kilometres, when everything hurts, is the real challenge. Incidentally, I now get far less nervous because I have (almost) everything under my own control and have to make far fewer decisions during the race than in orienteering. In orienteering, technical skill is just as important as physical condition. As a result, even in top physical shape, the margin between becoming world champion and finishing 20th is very narrow.

Coach

Daniel Klauser built me up and coached me continuously from the beginning in 2003 until the end of my orienteering career. In winter 2024, Viktor Röthlin initially took over the coaching role, handed it back again last year for the final orienteering competitions, before taking full responsibility once more in preparation for the New York City Marathon in November.

He plans the training sessions one to two weeks in advance, always has insight into my training schedule and provides feedback after hard sessions. Once a month, he joins me on my long runs. When he sees me running, he knows best how I am really doing.

Training partners

Unlike before, when we trained as part of a team, I now train as a lone athlete. This is partly due to time constraints, and partly because there are simply no longer any running partners in Bern who are willing – and perhaps also able – to complete the specific training in terms of pace and duration with me. I find this a shame, as a bit of competition wouldn’t hurt. Fortunately, I still have the weekly strength training sessions, which I complete together with my former orienteering colleagues.

Heart rate, pace or feel? 

I train by feel and pace, and in the hard sessions exclusively by pace. I only very rarely train with a heart-rate monitor. I use it after performance tests to check whether my perception matches the data. 

Insider tip

In endurance sport, there are no shortcuts or miracle cures. Focus on bringing continuity into your training, getting the basics right, and only then start trying to optimise.