Marlen Reusser

Marlen Reusser
Personal information
Full nameMarlen Reusser
NicknameThe Flying Elephant
Born (1991-09-20) 20 September 1991 (age 33)
Jegenstorf, Switzerland
Height180 cm (5 ft 11 in)
Weight68–72 kg (150–159 lb)
Team information
Current teamTeam SD Worx–Protime
DisciplineRoad
RoleRider
Professional teams
2019WCC Team[1]
2020Bigla–Katusha[2]
2021Alé BTC Ljubljana[3]
2022–SD Worx
Major wins
Grand Tours
Tour de France
2 individual stages (2022, 2023)
Medal record
Women's road bicycle racing
Representing  Switzerland
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2020 Tokyo Time trial
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2022 Wollongong Mixed team relay
Gold medal – first place 2023 Glasgow Mixed team relay
Silver medal – second place 2020 Imola Time trial
Silver medal – second place 2021 Brugge Time trial
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Wollongong Time trial
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 2021 Trentino Time trial
Gold medal – first place 2022 Munich Time trial
Gold medal – first place 2023 Drenthe Time trial
Silver medal – second place 2020 Plouay Mixed team relay
Bronze medal – third place 2020 Plouay Time trial
European Games
Gold medal – first place 2019 Minsk Time trial

Marlen Reusser (born 20 September 1991) is a Swiss racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI Women's WorldTeam Team SD Worx–Protime.[4]

Career

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She took up competitive cycling whilst at university, riding in the cycling legs of mixed relay triathlons as an amateur. She entered the road events of the Swiss national cycling championships in 2017, a few months after receiving a racing licence and whilst in the final year of studies for a degree in medicine: she won the time trial and was runner up in the road race. Her success earned her selection for that year's European Road Championships.[4] She also rode in the women's time trial event at the 2017 UCI Road World Championships.[5] In 2019 Reusser took up a place at the World Cycling Centre in Aigle, deciding to ride full-time. During her year with the WCC she finished third at the BeNe Ladies Tour and sixth in the World Championship individual time trial.[4]

The following year she took a top 10 finish at Liège–Bastogne–Liège.[4] She also rode in the individual time trial at the 2020 UCI Road World Championships in Imola, where she won the silver medal.[6]

For the 2021 season, Reusser joined the Alé BTC Ljubljana team, following the collapse of Équipe Paule Ka.[7] She rode in the individual time trial at the 2021 UCI Road World Championships in Brugge, where she won the bronze medal.

After one season there, she joined SD Worx in 2022.[4] She won stage 4 of the 2022 Tour de France Femmes in a solo breakaway. She was also named most combative rider for the day. She rode in the individual time trial at the 2022 UCI Road World Championships in Wollongong, where she won the bronze medal - as well as the mixed team relay where she won the gold medal.

In 2023, Reusser won Gent–Wevelgem, as well as the Itzulia Women and Tour de Suisse Women stage races. At the Tour de France Femmes, she won the stage 8 time trial in Pau.[8]

Personal life

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Marleen Reusser grew up in a farming family in the Swiss Emmental. Until 16 she played violin, and participated at an arts support program at the University of the Arts Bern. In school she started running, after a couple of ankle injuries she switched to swimming and cycling. 2008–2009 she was president of the Bernese Young Greens. After matura she studied medicine and worked as assistant doctor for surgery. 2017–2018 she was in the board of the Emmental Green Party. During the preparation for the road world championship 2018 in Innsbruck, she worked part time as a doctor in the Langnau hospital.[9][10][11]

Major results

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2017
National Road Championships
1st Time trial
2nd Road race
2018
4th Chrono Champenois – Trophée Européen
5th Time trial, National Road Championships
10th Chrono des Nations
2019
National Road Championships
1st Time trial
1st Road race
1st Time trial, European Games
1st Ljubljana–Domžale–Ljubljana TT
3rd BeNe Ladies Tour
3rd Chrono Champenois – Trophée Européen
4th SwissEver GP Cham–Hagendorn
5th Overall The Princess Maha Chackri Sirindhorn's Cup
6th Time trial, UCI Road World Championships
2020
1st Time trial, National Road Championships
UCI Road World Championships
2nd Time trial
10th Road race
UEC European Road Championships
2nd Team relay
3rd Time trial
5th Overall Setmana Ciclista Valenciana
7th Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes
2021
UEC European Road Championships
1st Time trial
7th Road race
National Road Championships
1st Time trial
1st Road race
1st Chrono des Nations
2nd Overall Challenge by La Vuelta
1st Stage 1
2nd Overall Holland Ladies Tour
1st Stage 2 (ITT)
2nd Time trial, Olympic Games
2nd Time trial, UCI Road World Championships
3rd Overall Tour de Suisse
4th Overall Ladies Tour of Norway
9th Tour of Flanders
2022
UCI Road World Championships
1st Team relay
3rd Time trial
1st Time trial, UEC European Road Championships
1st Stage 4 Tour de France
3rd Overall Bloeizone Fryslân Tour
4th Brabantse Pijl
5th Tour of Flanders
2023
1st Time trial, UEC European Road Championships
1st Overall Tour de Suisse
1st Stage 2 (ITT)
1st Overall Itzulia Women
1st Gent–Wevelgem
1st Stage 8 (ITT) Tour de France
3rd Liège–Bastogne–Liège
5th Vuelta a Burgos
6th Brabantse Pijl
7th Dwars door Vlaanderen
7th Tour of Flanders

References

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  1. ^ "WCC Team". UCI.org. Union Cycliste Internationale. Archived from the original on 10 March 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
  2. ^ "Bigla – Katusha". UCI.org. Union Cycliste Internationale. Archived from the original on 19 January 2020. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
  3. ^ "Ale' BTC Ljubljana". UCI.org. Union Cycliste Internationale. Archived from the original on 10 January 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e Jary, Rachel (24 February 2022). "Amateur to Olympic medallist in two years: Marlen Reusser on her fast-track to the top". Rouleur. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  5. ^ "World Championships WE - ITT 2017 Time trial results". www.procyclingstats.com. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
  6. ^ Frattini, Kirsten (24 September 2020). "Van der Breggen wins time trial title at Imola World Championships". cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  7. ^ Frattini, Kirsten (27 October 2020). "Marlen Reusser signs with Alé BTC Ljubljana in 2021". Cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
  8. ^ "Vollering wins Tour de France Femmes title". BBC Sport. 30 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
  9. ^ Sport aktuell, SRF, 24 September 2018
  10. ^ Die wahre Grenze liegt im Kopf, Selina Stucki, Der Bund, 24 September 2018.
  11. ^ Die velofahrende Ärztin (The cycling doctor), Berner Zeitung, 23 March 2018.
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