Lauren Grüniger
| Lauren Grüniger | |
|---|---|
Lauren Grüniger at the 2025 Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships | |
| Personal information | |
| Born | 3 February 2007 Zurich, Switzerland |
| Gymnastics career | |
| Discipline | Rhythmic gymnastics |
| Country represented | Switzerland (2021-present) |
| Club | Glarner Turnverband |
Lauren Grüniger (international spelling Grueniger), (born 3 February 2007) is a Swiss individual rhythmic gymnast.
Personal life
Grüniger was born in Zurich to a Swiss father and a Singaporean mother, and she has a younger sister. She grew up speaking German and English.[1] She is also fluent in Italian and Russian, and she has studied French.[2]
Career
At ten years old in 2017, Grüniger attended a training camp in Moscow. She asked her parents if she could stay to continue training. After a long discussion, her father agreed to let her live there with a host family, as the training conditions were better there than in Switzerland; for example, there was ample access to training areas with sprung floors that reduce the impact of jumps, while there was only one intermittently available in Switzerland. She attended a German school and continued to train in Moscow through at least the end of 2021. Grüniger spoke positively about her experiences training in Russia.[1][2]
Junior
In 2021, as a junior, Grüniger won her first medal at a FIG tournament in June, a bronze. She also had the highest score of all gymnasts at the Swiss National Championships that year.[3]
In 2022, she competed in the junior event at the Irina Cup, which was used as a selection event for the European Championships by the Swiss Gymnastics Federation. She won the bronze medal in the ball final.[4] She was selected for the junior team at the European Championships and competed with ball only; she was 24th with that apparatus, and she and her teammates placed 18th in the team competition.[5]
Senior
Grüniger began competing as a senior in 2023. Her first international senior competition was the Gymnastik International in March, where she placed 10th and qualified for the hoop and ball finals.[6] She was selected for the 2023 European Championships along with Norah Demierre, and she placed 42nd in the all-around qualifications.[7]
She injured her foot during mandatory sports lesson at her school in December 2023 and took months off training to recover.[1] She did not compete in early 2024, but returned to compete at the Swiss National Championships in June, where she won silver in the all-around behind Sophia Carlotta Chiariello.[8]
In 2025, she competed at the World Challenge Cup in Portimão, where she placed 12th in the all-around and qualified for the clubs and ribbon finals.[9] At the Swiss National Championships, she won the senior title and three of the four event finals.[10] In June, she competed at her second European Championships, where she placed 30th in the all-around qualifications and narrowly missed qualifying to the final. She said afterward, "Of course I'm disappointed, but I'm also proud of my performance."[11] She also competed at the 2025 Summer World University Games in July, where she placed 12th in the all-around.[12]
She was selected to represent Switzerland at her first World Championships in August, and ahead of the Championships, she trained in Germany.[13] At the Championships, she placed 30th in the all-around qualifications.[14]
In the fall on 2025 she competeted for Bremen 1860 at the Bundesliga and won the 3rd place at the finals in Schmiden, Germany, in a direct battle with TB Oppau. This was the best result for Bremen 1860 since joining the Erste Bundesliga in the year 2020.
Her first internaitonal competition in 2026 was the Grand Prix Miss Valentine in Tartu, Estonia. She finished 15th on the AA and the 4th place in the final with clubs.[1] In March, she won bronze medal in all-around at Gymnastik International in Fellbach Schmiden, Germany.[15] A week later, she won bronze medal in all-around at MTM tournament in Ljubljana.[16]
References
- ^ a b c Bärtsch, Philipp (31 December 2021). "Rhythmische Gymnastik: Ein Mädchen zieht alleine nach Moskau" [How a 10-year-old moved to Russia alone to become a rhythmic gymnast]. Neue Zürcher Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ a b Favre, Emmanuel (7 November 2021). "À 10 ans, elle quitte la Suisse et s'installe à Moscou" [At the age of 10, she left Switzerland and moved to Moscow]. Tribune de Genève (in French). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ "Rhythmische Gymnastik: Das sind die 6 grössten Talente" [Rhythmic Gymnastics: These Are the 6 Greatest Talents]. Nau (in Swiss High German). 23 June 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ Dütschler, Oliver (2 May 2022). "Bronzemedaille für Lauren Grüniger beim Irina Cup 2022" [Bronze medal for Lauren Grüniger at the 2022 Irina Cup]. Nau (in Swiss High German). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ Greutmann, Thomas (6 October 2025). "Schweizer Juniorinnen-Team erreicht an der EM den 18. Rang" [Swiss junior team reaches 18th place at the European Championships]. Swiss Gymnastics Federation (in Swiss High German). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ Dütschler, Oliver (9 March 2023). "Schweizer Gymnastinnen sorgen bei Traditionsturnier für Furore" [Swiss gymnasts cause a sensation at traditional tournament]. Nau (in Swiss High German). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ Dütschler, Oliver (22 May 2023). "Norah Demierre überzeugt bei ihrem EM-Debüt in Baku" [Norah Demierre convinces on her European Championship debut in Baku]. Nau (in Swiss High German). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ "Schweizer Meisterschaften Rhythmische Gymnastik 2024" [Swiss Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships 2024]. www.ztv.ch. 2 June 2024. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ Dütschler, Oliver (20 May 2025). "Lauren Grüniger überzeugt am World Challenge Cup in Portimao" [Lauren Grüniger convinces at the World Challenge Cup in Portimao]. Nau (in Swiss High German). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ Herzog, Alexandra (6 October 2025). "Lauren Grüniger kürt sich überlegen zur Schweizer Meisterin" [Lauren Grüniger crowns herself Swiss Champion]. Swiss Gymnastics Federation (in Swiss High German). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ Dütschler, Oliver (9 June 2025). "Lauren Grüniger verpasst EM-Final nur knapp" [Lauren Grüniger narrowly misses out on European Championship final]. Nau (in Swiss High German). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ "Rhine-Ruhr 2025 Result Book Rhythmic Gymnastics" (PDF). Rhine Ruhr 2025. 21 July 2025. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ Estibeira, Carolina (6 October 2025). "Erste WM-Teilnahme für Lauren Grüniger" [First World Championships participation for Lauren Grüniger]. Swiss Gymnastics Federation (in Swiss High German). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ Dütschler, Oliver (22 August 2025). "Lauren Grüniger glänzt an der WM in Brasilien" [Lauren Grüniger shines at the World Championships in Brazil]. Nau (in Swiss High German). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ "Ergebnisse/Results - Gymnastik International". gymnastik-international.de (in German). Retrieved 15 March 2026.
- ^ "38. MTM LJUBLJANA FIG AND NON FIG TOURNAMENT". ksis.eu. Retrieved 22 March 2026.