Prix Suisse 2023

Marco Odermatt

Olympic champion, double world champion, two-time overall World Cup winner

On Saturday, November 11, 2023, the "Prix Suisse" was awarded to Marco Odermatt at a large gala dinner hosted by Initiative Switzerland in the Kursaal Bern. The Prix Suisse, a national award that was presented for only the third time, is the highest accolade for outstanding achievements in Switzerland.

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His career will go down in history and his story will always remind us that true greatness is made up of passion, determination and hard work.

Federal Councillor Viola Amherd in her laudation

Portrait Marco Odermatt

Federal Councillor Viola Amherd presented the Prix Suisse to the exceptional athlete Marco Odermatt in front of around 400 invited guests from business, science, politics and sport in Bern's Kursaal on Saturday evening. Marco Odermatt is an Olympic champion, double world champion and two-time overall World Cup winner. Whether giant slalom, super-G or downhill. With his aggressive and confident skiing style, he dominates the Alpine Ski World Cup. His amazing career and impressive successes have made the likeable man from Nidwalden one of the best ski racers in the world.

Interview with President Bill Clinton

The 42nd President of the United States of America, Bill Clinton, led the United States to the longest economic boom in American history during his time in office and created more than 22 million jobs. After leaving the White House, he established the Clinton Foundation in order to continue to support causes close to his heart. President Bill Clinton addressed the current global challenges during a keynote interview with Urs Gredig at the award ceremony.

Culinary delights at the highest level

The reigning world champions of the Swiss national culinary team prepared the menu with which they won two gold medals at the Culinary World Cup in Luxembourg for around 400 guests in the Kursaal Bern. The Swiss national culinary team and the juniors prevailed against the best teams from 51 nations.

Coat of arms of Switzerland

The Swiss Initiative played a key role in a national project initiated by National Council President Martin Candinas. In the National Council Chamber, 59 coats of arms of the most populous municipalities and cities from 1902 can be admired. These represent not only the entire Swiss people, but also the members of the National Council and thus symbolize an important political level alongside the Confederation and the cantons.

In order to preserve the historical heritage of the over 120-year-old coats of arms, the Swiss Initiative used state-of-the-art drone technology to photograph and faithfully reproduce the 26 cantonal coats of arms on the south façade of the parliament building and the 59 municipal and city coats of arms on the ceiling of the National Council chamber. The processed data was then handed over to the parliamentary services.

Promotion of entrepreneurship

At EuroSkills in Gdansk, the SwissSkills National Team impressed with the best Swiss result in EuroSkills history: Competing in 16 events, the SwissSkills National Team won no fewer than 15 medals.

Ralf Boltshauser and Raymond Tea won gold at the EuroSkills in Gdansk. The two achieved 1st place in the Entrepreneurship category. The results once again demonstrate the excellence of the Swiss vocational education and training system in an international comparison. Initiative Switzerland has been a Leading Partner since the beginning and recently confirmed its cooperation until 2025.

Loreen as special surprise

The musical surprise guest was two-time Eurovision winner Loreen from Sweden. Her music has taken her into the top 10 of the charts in over 20 countries and earned her numerous prizes and awards, including the MTV Europe Music Award and the World Music Award.

Highlights of the night

Our guests find further pictures in the (password-protected) online gallery.