“I asked for no special arrangements, even as an elite athlete!”

McIntyre is a surname that evokes the Scottish Highlands, synonymous with the rugged mountains that served as the backdrop to movies like Braveheart and Harry Potter.But Paul McIntyre is a long way from Scotland: his family left the UK when he was 12 years old, as his mother longed to move back to her native Switzerland. The story of his parents’ meeting is an unlikely and romantic one: they first locked eyes as strangers on a flight. His father, a Scot, has adapted well to life in Switzerland. “He speaks fluent French and he’s learning German via Duolingo,” says McIntyre. “I hear his phone pinging every morning.” But McIntyre senior is quick to reconnect with his Celtic roots whenever he speaks to relatives back home. “When my grandfather and my dad talk on the phone, they speak Scots,” he explains. “It’s much more energetic than standard English. They roll their r’s a lot.”

Tactics and technique

Following his move to Switzerland, McIntyre threw himself into athletics, trying his hand at a whole range of disciplines: shot put, javelin, high jump, long jump and more. “I eventually settled on running, and I especially enjoyed races open to the public,” he says. “My tactic – because I wanted to win – was not to run faster but to compete over longer distances, since there was less competition. That made winning easier. I stuck with this tactic until I won my silver medal in the 2018 Lausanne Marathon.”

Deciding he’d had enough of 26-mile road races, McIntyre began working on his technique, focusing on speed over endurance. “As soon as I started at EPFL, I joined the local athletics club in Lausanne and specialized in shorter distances,” he explains. “I fell in love with the 1,500 meters. It’s my favorite distance. Nothing excites me more than battling it out over three and three-quarter laps of the track. Attacking too early is dangerous. But so is leaving it too late. You have to really know yourself. I’m not the best sprinter, but I have a strong finish, and that’s what helped me become Swiss champion this year.” McIntyre took gold in the 1,500 meters at the Swiss indoor championships in February 2024.

Computer science is a creative discipline

McIntyre, who has a bachelor’s in computer science, is now in the final stretch of a master’s in data science with a minor in cybersecurity. He’ll graduate in 2025 once he’s finished his internship. And he’ll also celebrate his 25th birthday next year. “I failed my first semester and had to take the Mise à Niveau [MàN] review course,” he recalls. “It’s a remedial program that helps you sharpen your study skills and get better organized. I realized that my problem was poor organization, not a lack of motivation. You have to work to a proper schedule, join a study group – which helps a lot – and not be afraid to ask for help. At first, I found it hard to go and see the assistants; I thought my questions were silly. But most of the time, that wasn’t the case.”

McIntyre chose computer science because he wanted to explore his creative side. An avid gamer in his younger years, he hoped to one day become a developer and experience video games from the other side of the screen. “I really enjoy creating new worlds,” he says. “There’s something almost magical about developing a program that functions as it should. I’m working on Python script automation for my master’s degree. Those lightbulb moments when everything suddenly works are incredibly rewarding.”

No half measures

Throughout his time at EPFL, McIntyre has never once asked for special arrangements for his classes – an option open to elite athletes – because he wanted to experience student life to the fullest. “I didn’t want to water down my studies, even if that meant missing out on social events,” he says. “Back then, I was also working part-time at EPFL. Even during the review sessions, I’d come to campus and follow a strict timetable: I’d study between 7 am and 10 am, go running between 10 am and 11 am, and study again until 5 pm. Then I’d be back on the track again between 5 pm and 6 pm. My sister was a huge source of motivation. She cycled alongside me on long runs and joined me for all my strength training sessions.”

McIntyre has just started his internship at ELCA, an IT firm in Lausanne. “We analyze social media posts to see how users react to different brands and products,” he says. “Our work is intended to help companies become more responsive. It’s about bringing order to chaos.” He’ll soon be called up to complete his Swiss military service. “Most people do their service between their bachelor’s and master’s degrees,” he says. “But I decided to postpone it because I wanted to apply for the elite athlete track at Magglingen.”

McIntyre has a particular trick for clearing his head and recharging his batteries: fishing. “It’s a very slow pursuit,” he explains. “There’s no stress or clock-watching. You just sit there and ‘be.’ I love going fishing with my friends, especially after exams.