The Swiss cyclist Marlen Reusser has committed to riding for Team SD Worx for the next two years (2022 and 2023). At the Tokyo Olympics, Reusser won the silver medal in the time trial. Last year she was also second in this discipline at the World Championships in Imola, after Anna van der Breggen, who became world champion and is also part of Team SD Worx. “Reusser is a rider with enormous potential and will make the team a lot stronger in general”, emphasises sports manager Danny Stam of Team SD Worx.
Over the last two years, Reusser has evolved into the absolute world leader in the time trial. According to Danny Stam, the Swiss rider still has a lot of growth margin in road competitions despite her relatively older age of 29. Among other things, he points to her 7th place in Liège-Bastogne-Liège 2020, 10th place in the World Cup on the road in 2020, 9th place in the Tour of Flanders 2021 and 4th place in the Tour of Norway 2021.
Stam: “Marlen can still take steps in terms of race insight. Tactically, she can still learn a lot from us. Racing will become very different for her when she is still surrounded by a few teammates in the finals. I think she can be of great value to the team in the classics. She has the advantage with her good time trial that she is also able to set up a solo in a final. Certainly with a few team members behind her, she will soon take advantage of their powerful support.”
Reusser has only been competing for four years, which means she has only started top sport very late (after the age of 25). “I agree with Danny that I can still learn a lot and make a lot of progress in the road competitions,” reaffirms Reusser. “Over the last two years, I have shown that I have the ability to fight against other top cyclists. The time trial is the easiest way to demonstrate your talent because you have to perform on it in a straight-forward way. A road competition is more complex, involving positioning, tactics
and teamwork. Team SD Worx has proven itself to be the best team in recent years. The team is extremely professional and always has a good race plan. They are also strong in general. I didn’t hesitate for long when the team came up with an offer.”
Reusser very much appreciated that Anna van der Breggen also spoke with her to explain why Team SD Worx believes that the Swiss can come into her own in the team. “The conversation with Anna felt very good. It gives me confidence that she will be working for Team SD Worx as one of the team leaders from next year, just like Chantal Blaak. They have seen from the peloton what I can do and what my limitations are. For example, when I look back at how easily I resigned myself to missing the decisive breakaway of eight riders in the last Tour of Flanders because I was not at the good position while I still had good legs. I really realise that with more race insight and a good team around me, I can also compete with the best in the classics.”
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