‘Miracle’ man Alexander Ritschard inspired by girlfriend’s healthy eating plan | ATP Tour

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‘Miracle’ man Ritschard inspired by his girlfriend’s healthy eating plan

Switzerland has won three Challenger titles this season

October 02, 2024

Alexander Ritschard is strong in 2024 with a new limit, climbing into the Top 100 of the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time on Wednesday. After the scene, the important person changed his direction quietly.

The Swiss was inspired by a new healthy eating plan, run by his girlfriend, Kat Berglas. Ritschard, 30, has been dating Berglas for seven months, and in that short time, his expertise has helped him earn a spot on the ATP Challenger Tour.

“He was the missing piece that I needed to do what I’m doing now,” Ritschard told ATPTour.com. “He has helped me a lot with my diet, he helps me feel motivated and I feel good [better]. Since I have taken his advice, I feel healthy.”

In April, Ritschard was down as he reached World No. 209. Since then he has taken three of his four Challenger titles, including last week in Lisbon, Portugal, where Ritschard received court support from Berglas.

When Ritschard first met Berglas, he asked about his work. When she found out he was a nutritionist, he asked if she would be interested in helping him and Berglas happily agreed. He developed a tailor-made nutrition plan.

“I can’t give away all the secrets,” Ritschard joked. “Everyone has a different body, a different metabolism. For me personally, I’m a person who burns carbohydrates quickly and sweats a lot, so I have to eat a lot of carbohydrates and drink a lot of salt and drink a lot of fluids.

“He brought me the whole program. I eat a certain amount the day before, a certain amount on the day, I eat every time I play a match. My drink is a very carbohydrate heavy drink. Also, I eat lots of bananas for potassium and lots of cereal bars for more carbs. I’m really passionate about it, and he’s always watching.”

One of two players to make his Top 100 debut on Wednesday (Jacob Fearnley), Ritschard’s path to where he is now took an unexpected turn in 2015, when a blocked artery in his right arm cut off blood flow. Ritschard, then a student athlete at the University of Virginia, was working out when he felt a sting in his shoulder.

What initially seemed small quickly escalated, bringing Ritschard within minutes of facing the unthinkable: losing his right arm.

“I can go according to what they told me, they said they have to make a decision in the next five minutes and it was not open.” I think I was lucky, it opened, the blood flowed again,” said Ritschard last year.

Ritschard needed a lot of work to solve the problem. “One to open an artery, the second one to remove the problem, which was a rib that was very strong and my lungs suddenly filled with blood and I had to pump blood,” recalled Ritschard, who helped Virginia win. three straight NCAA team titles.

Post-surgery limitations have left Ritschard questioning her future in tennis. He was wondering if he could quit the game after he finished college. But now he is among a special group, boasting a double-digit number next to his name in the PIF ATP Rankings at World No. 99.

Alexander Ritschard celebrates winning the Lisbon Challenger.” style=”width:100%;” src=”https://www.atptour.com/-/media/images/news/2024/09/30/17/ 37/ritschard-lisbonch-2024.jpg”>
^{Alexander Ritschard celebrates winning the Del Monte Lisboa Belém Open. Credit: Beatriz Ruivo/FPT}

Ritschard has regular check-up appointments to make sure everything stays normal with his right arm, and thankfully, there have been no problems. Just last month, a week before he won the Lisbon Challenger title, Ritschard felt his arm go numb while he was sleeping. But doctors put to rest any concerns.

“That was just me sleeping funny,” Ritschard said. “On inspection, everything looks really good.”

When Ritschard steps on the court, or in the doctor’s office, he is reminded of his incredible luck to even play this game that he started at the age of five.

“I was really lucky. That’s the only way I can put it,” said Ritschard. “Even now, I go to see the doctor who was part of the surgery and he always laughs when I come in because he says, ‘Man, you’re a miracle!’ This is crazy. I don’t believe you can do what you do with what we had to do’.

“It’s always funny to see him, he’s so proud because he’s like, ‘Yeah, I saved this guy!'”

Now, Ritschard uses that same — and vulnerable — arm to unleash heavy hitting from the baseline. What could have been a career-ending injury instead is a testament to Ritschard’s resilience.

In the way of his life, Ritschard is the first of the Top 100 oldest since October 2022, when Emilio Gomez reaches the milestone.

“I wanted to be a Top 100 player since I was little,” said Ritschard. “So this for me is definitely a very important moment.”