Silver for Germany, bronze for Latvia – the salt in our wounds from Riga The complete Formula 1 calendar: what you need to know about the circuits and races

Just a quick test: how many players from the World Cup teams of Harold Kreis and Harijs Witolinsch would Patrick Fischer have called up if they were Swiss? So how many better, more talented than the 29 men around Captain Nino Niederreiter who performed the song of the dying swan in Riga? In order not to arouse the suspicion of polemics, only numbers are mentioned. Without naming names.

Never before in this century have so few stars attended a World Cup tournament. The hour of the geeks. Latvia and Germany seized this unique opportunity with silver and bronze. We are not. With the best World Cup team in our history. Yes, international observers agree: no one brought so much pure talent to the 2023 World Cup as the Swiss. The Canadians were no more talented than us either.

But Canada is still the number 1 hockey country with 513,674 players and now 28 World Cup titles. Germany (21,090) and Latvia (7,898), on the other hand, have fewer licensed players than Switzerland (29,360). The national leagues are operetta leagues compared to our National League in terms of budgets, salaries, big names and ratings.

And yet the Germans and Latvians were better. Why? Because the Swiss lost their humility in Riga. As we can now see in retrospect, that was the central point: they wanted to be modern. After four wins (7-0 against Slovenia, 3-0 against Norway, 5-0 against Kazakhstan and 3-2 against eventual world champions Canada), they changed their starting line-up and even their power play formations without needing to. It still worked against the Czech Republic (4:2) and it seemed as if the national coach had more options and our team was more unpredictable for the opponents.

But then four important players and the two best goalkeepers got a rest for the last group match against Latvia. Concentration and momentum were lost: 3-4 aet v Latvia, 1-3 v Germany.

The Germans and Latvians never got around to losing their humility and becoming arrogant. After three initial defeats, the Germans had to win the remaining four group games to reach the quarter-finals. National coach Harold Kreis summed it up:

The Latvians started the World Cup with a bitter 6-0 defeat to Canada and needed at least a point to reach the quarter-finals in the final group game against Switzerland.

Moreover, ice hockey is not nearly as important in Germany as it is in Switzerland. The Germans are naturally more humble at a World Cup.

Continuity is desirable in sport. As long as this continuity does not lead to complacency and as long as it allows for constant critical debate. Patrick Fischer has been in office since 2015. That is gratifying and correct. But there is no critical discussion with his employer (in the association management).

The German Ice Hockey Federation has not rested since 2015. Marco Sturm led the team to Olympic silver in 2018 after beating Switzerland in the round of 16, his successor Toni Söderholm finished 4th at the 2021 World Cup after beating Switzerland and now Harold Kreis has won after beating Switzerland and won eventually silver in the quarterfinals. He was only able to take over the team in the course of the season. Toni Söderholm had walked away from an ongoing contract to fail in Bern. Three national coaches, three victories against Switzerland, three heroic deeds.

With so much fear, there is no overconfidence. Only humility remains. From this point of view, it makes sense that Patrick Fischer celebrated his greatest triumph (WM silver) in 2018. After a completely failed Olympic tournament – who came with a claim to a medal and left again after a defeat against Germany – his position came under discussion.

The World Cup tournament started a few weeks later with an embarrassing loss of points against Austria (3:2 aet). To get to the quarter-finals, the last group match against France had to be won. It was the last World Cup so far where we trembled before qualifying for the quarter-finals. The last World Cup so far where we were humbled. The last World Cup where we reached our potential. The last World Cup where we won a medal.

Now that we know the final result of the 2023 World Cup, it is clear: the Germans and the Latvians have received the medal that was actually reserved for us. Silver for Germany, bronze for Latvia:

The Swiss have given away a World Cup medal, indeed a one-time chance at the World Cup title. Riga’s disgrace is all the more bitter because there is far too much homemade. There’s no excuse.