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Olivier Bernhard

Co-founder, On · 1 appearance on the record.

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founderathleteexecutiveon.com ↗

Olivier Bernhard is a former multi-time world duathlon champion and Ironman winner who co-founded the Swiss athletic footwear brand On in 2010. He invented the prototype for On's proprietary CloudTec sole and continues to guide product initiatives for the company.

9statements → 7claims → 2claims resolved → 3.78/5average certainty → 1.56/5average debate potential → 2said about them ↓

0 supported 1 partly supported 1 contradicted 5 not checkable as stated how the 7 claims stand · each chip opens the sources

7 assertions · 2 disclosures · every statement was checked. The predictions and assertions are the 7 claims: statements the public record can support or contradict. 2 are resolved, and 5 name no date, number or outcome precise enough to check. Everything else (opinions, insights, what ifs, disclosures) can never be settled by the record, so it carries no assessment.

The record, in short

What the tape says about how Olivier argues and how the claims held up. Everything they said, and everything said about them, is in the tabs below.

Their most notable contradicted claim

Assertion Contradicted
On was likely the first running shoe to embed a rigid plate
“We were probably the first brand using plate, a plate in the shoe, we call it speed board.”
Olivier Bernhard Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 42:59 On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti

How they sound: not measured why? →

We measure speaking style by listening to the audio itself, and a fair number needs at least 2,000 words from one person on tape we have measured. There is too little of Olivier Bernhard on measured tape to publish a rate. This says nothing about how they speak.

Everything Olivier Bernhard said on How I Built This that made the record, most notable first. Filter by type, assessment or year in the ledger →

Assertion Contradicted
On was likely the first running shoe to embed a rigid plate
“We were probably the first brand using plate, a plate in the shoe, we call it speed board.”
Olivier Bernhard Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 42:59 On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti
Disclosure
On only pursues product concepts considered impossible to build
“I think it's so deeply ingrained nowadays in the company that we only approach things that are impossible. If people are coming back, you know, after initial idea or vision, and people come back and say, oh, yeah, we can do it. I said, then we don't do it. Lea…”
Olivier Bernhard Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 48:23 On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Bernhard's garden hose prototype cured his chronic Achilles issues in six weeks
“Again, I have had my Achilles issues for maybe three, three and a half years to at the end of my career. And I've seen so many doctors and specialists and nothing really helped. And within six weeks walking and running in the garden hose shoes, since today, th…”
Olivier Bernhard Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 23:45 On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Nike refused to look at sponsored athlete Bernhard's shoe prototype
“I was an athlete, right, running for their company, becoming world champion, they didn't even want to look at the technology, not even at the drawing.”
Olivier Bernhard Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 25:14 On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Bernhard pitched On's early prototype to Nike, Puma, Adidas, New Balance
“We pitched it to Nike, Puma, Adidas New Balance.”
Olivier Bernhard Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 24:33 On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Puma invited On's founders to headquarters to lab-test shoe prototypes
“And Puma actually invited us to their headquarters, and they, you know, to me, the CEO back then said, when we sent the shoes, he said, yeah, we sent the semi, you know, Three, five shoes. We're going to take it to the lab.”
Olivier Bernhard Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 25:30 On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti
Assertion Not checkable as stated
On produced its first 8,000 to 10,000 shoes in South Korea
“I think it was like 10,000 or 8000 shoes we produced in Busan in South Korea.”
Olivier Bernhard Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 29:49 On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti
Disclosure
On secured early retail sales by running with store owners
“Casper and I, we you know, attacked the German, Austrian, and Swiss market. I think it was year one and two. Not very successful until I think it was Casper coming, you know, and saying, hey, all these retailers are actually, you know, they're runners, you kno…”
Olivier Bernhard Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 44:49 On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti
Assertion Partly supported
Bernhard gave 195 urine samples to clear 1998 doping allegations
“Because of training and diet, that was then the outcome. I was trying to work with a doping laboratory, and at the end, I think it was 195 urine samples. And you know, it was randomly taken.”
Olivier Bernhard Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 16:24 On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti

The other half of the tape: Olivier Bernhard's own voice is left out of every number here. 2 statements on the record name them. every mention, with the transcript →

Statements about Olivier Bernhard, by other people (2)

Disclosure
On launched with 300k CHF cash and 150k CHF sweat equity
“Yeah, so we each put the 150,000 in, and Oli didn't have the cash, so we basically Took his efforts so far into the company and valid that at 150. So, so that's how we started.”
Caspar Coppetti Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 40:13 On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti
Assertion Supported
Coppetti and Bernhard's partnership began by publicizing Bernhard's doping clearance
“That was actually the first assignment for me as this press agent, like basically how do we make sure that like this makes the front page and we managed to get the story about him being cleared into pretty much every newspaper. We went on, on Swiss national TV…”
Caspar Coppetti Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 17:31 On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti

Appearances (1)

EpisodeDateSpeaking time
On athletic shoes: Olivier Bernhard and Caspar Coppetti Jul 22, 2024 16m
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