Corinne Althaus - Switzerland's 2026 European Doublette Silver Medalist | Player Profile

Corinne Althaus - Quick Facts

From a Reluctant Start to a Long Career on the Vaud Circuit

Corinne Althaus took up pétanque in 1995 more or less by chance - by her own account in a 2015 interview, she disliked the sport at first before it became a lasting part of her life. Based in the Vaud region and playing for CP Moudon, she built one of the deepest domestic résumés in Swiss pétanque over the following two decades, then capped it in 2026 with the biggest result of her international career: a European Championship silver medal in women's doublette.

Career Overview

By the time of a 2015 profile piece, Althaus had already assembled a substantial trophy case: 4 Swiss national doubles titles, 3 Swiss national triples titles, and a career-best third-place finish at a World Championship held in the Canary Islands, alongside three European Championship and three World Championship team selections. Her cantonal record with the Association Vaudoise de Pétanque (AVP) was even deeper - 14 Vaud doubles titles, 11 Vaud triples titles, and 6 Vaud tête-à-tête titles - reflecting years as one of the region's most consistent competitors.

Althaus has also competed abroad. In 2018, she won the French "Sport GF" national triplette final in Chalon-sur-Saône, teaming with Nathalie Poget and Sylviane Métairon for the title, a rare case of a Swiss player topping a French national final field.

Her most significant result to date came in 2026. Selected for Swiss Pétanque's delegation to the European Championship in Lorca, Murcia, Spain (18-21 June), Althaus competed in both the women's doublette, partnering Yvonne Bless, and the individual tête-à-tête event. In the doublette, the Swiss pair produced the tournament's biggest comeback: trailing France's Charlotte Darodes and Aurélie Bories 0-6 early in the semifinal, Althaus and Bless fought back to win 13-6 and reach the final. There, host nation Spain completed a home doublette sweep, beating the Swiss pair 13-7 to deny them gold - still Switzerland's best women's doublette result at a European Championship in years.

Playing Style and Technique

Althaus plays as a pointer (pointeuse) for the Swiss national team, the role focused on placing boules as close as possible to the jack rather than knocking opposing boules out of play. Notably, she has said in interviews that she personally prefers the milieu (middle) role - a player who splits time between pointing and shooting - even though pointing has been her assignment in national-team competition. Her long cantonal record in both doubles and triples formats reflects a well-rounded game built over three decades of competition.

Achievements and Honors

• Silver, Women's Doublette, European Championship (Lorca, Spain, 2026), with Yvonne Bless
• Champion, French national "Sport GF" triplette final (Chalon-sur-Saône, 2018), with Nathalie Poget and Sylviane Métairon
• 4 Swiss national doubles titles and 3 Swiss national triples titles (career total as of 2015)
• 14 Vaud cantonal doubles titles, 11 Vaud cantonal triples titles, and 6 Vaud cantonal tête-à-tête titles (career total as of 2015)
• Third place, World Championship, Canary Islands (as of 2015)

Legacy

Corinne Althaus's 2026 European silver, alongside the comeback win over France that set it up, capped a career built almost entirely on the Vaud cantonal circuit and Swiss national competition rather than early international fame - a reminder that some of the sport's most durable competitors are found well outside France's traditional powerhouse clubs. Her partnership with Yvonne Bless gave Swiss Pétanque its strongest women's doublette result at a European Championship in recent memory.