"In a land of thousands of disabled veterans from the thirty year civil war, one armed Beny Furrer becomes a symbol figure..."

NZZ

"With great enthusiasm but without a chance, someboy plunges into a bicycle race that is more adventurous than the Tour de France - and becomes the hero of the audience..."

Der Bund

Director: Urs Schnell
Production: Swiss National TV

camera: Mani Koller
editing and sound: Dodo Hunziker
a production of SF Swiss TV 2006

Sweat for Blood

Documentary, CH, 52 Min., HDCAM

A documentary about two extra-ordinary Swiss men at an extraordinary cycle race in East Africa.

To promote blood donation for the Swiss Red Cross- in a country shaken by war, Doc Redbeard -(Martin Weber, 58) puts his shirt on Beny. -Beny (50)- is an -ultra-distance sport cyclist – and one armed. Through the cycle race Giro d’Eritrea they experience a for-gotten country full of surprise.

Beny Furrer wants to cycle down the 1’100 kilometers of the Giro d’Eritrea as the ambassador of blood. His participation amongst a hundred young local cyclists should state that blood donation doesn’t effect his performance. Even if he has only one arm and is at the- age of 50. Beny wants to invalidate the old African prejudice that blood donation causes a loss of energy.

In Eritrea one finds a great number of disabled people.- Most of them victims of the long war for independence.- Many of these fighters were treated -by Doc Readbeard in a refugee camp at the Sudanese-Eritrean boarder. Since then, the Doctor with the red bushy mustache is called Abu Shenab Moishnung (Crazy Doctor Redbeard).

Sweat For Blood shows the incredible adventure of two real characters on their mission in the breath-taking scenery of East Africa.