Doppelmayr/Garaventa Sponsors Para Bobsleigh World Champion Jonas Frei

Over the next three years, Garaventa will be sponsoring para bobsleigh rider Jonas Frei from the canton of Schwyz. The youngest para bobsleigh world champion in history has been working for Garaventa since 2013. The 24-year-old started off life as a system and apparatus builder and has worked as a design engineer following a serious scooter accident.

Jonas Frei, overall World Cup champion and European champion in para bobsleigh, has signed a sponsoring agreement with Garaventa for the next three years. The 24-year-old works as a design engineer at Garaventa AG.

From sawdust to ice track

Summer 2013 marked the start of training to become a system and apparatus builder at Garaventa in Goldau for Jonas Frei. After a serious scooter accident in April 2014, everything changed. For someone who had previously been an avid Swiss wrestler, one thing was clear: He would continue to practice an action-packed sports discipline, even in a wheelchair. During his rehabilitation at the Swiss Paraplegic Center in Nottwil, Frei discovered the sport of para bobsleigh. On the career front, Jonas Frei decided on an apprenticeship as design engineer, which he successfully completed at Garaventa in 2019.

Remarkable sporting history

Over the past few years, Jonas Frei has been investing all his spare time in parabob training. His dedication has paid off and his successes are impressive. At the IBSF Para-Sport World Championships 2021 in St. Moritz, Jonas Frei was the first Swiss to win the title at the world championships for para bobsleigh athletes. At 23, Jonas Frei was also the youngest para bobsleigh world champion in history. In the past 2021/22 season, Frei successfully defended his world champion title in Lillehammer. This enabled him to finish the season as overall World Cup champion and European champion. “The entire Garaventa team is immensely proud of Jonas and his impressive achievements”, says CEO Arno Inauen.

Olympic aspirations

With the additional support from Garaventa, Jonas Frei will be able to invest even more time in the sport of bobsleigh in future. He is delighted: “I’m really happy that my employer is also supporting my sports career. I’m very proud to be able to represent the company in parabob.” The 24-year-old would also like to drive forward this sports discipline, for example, obtaining recognition from the Olympic Committee. This summer, the application was rejected for the 2026 edition in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, so Frei has now set his sights on 2030: “My biggest goal is to take part in the Olympic Games one day.”