Women's European Championship ITT Preview: Can Marlen Reusser match the record?

Date: Wednesday, 1 October
Length: 24km
Elevation gain: 200m
Start: 14:20 (CET)
Startlist: available here

Looking for the men’s preview? You can find it here.

The route for both the elite men's and women's individual time trial is 24km in length, featuring 200 metres of elevation gain, with a climb inside the closing kilometres, which will spice up the action, with plenty of time to make a difference.

The route begins in the small French town of Loriol-sur-Drôme and heads east with the first 8km on fast main roads along the D-104 running parallel to the Drôme river.

After the 8km mark, the route reaches a roundabout where the riders will turn left and head north on the D-125. Just shy of the 10km mark, the riders will pass over a bridge which crosses the Drôme river.

The next couple of kilometres are straightforward before the route passes through the town of Allex, which features one of the more technical sections on the route.

From kilometer 13 until kilometer 22, the route continues on long, straightforward sections of road with a couple of turns breaking each stretch of road up, but it is another key section to put the power down and stay aero. 

The riders will need to keep enough back for the finale, which sees the road rise for 1.1km with an average gradient of 5.2% which takes the riders just a few hundred metres from the finish in Étoile-sur-Rhône, where the gradients plateau. 

There are some important corners inside the final kilometre, meaning that differences can still be made right until the line in Étoile-sur-Rhône. 

The Rhône Valley is set to be very windy. Average speeds are expected around 30 km/h, with gusts reaching up to 60 km/h. For the opening 8 km, riders will face mostly crosswinds, before turning into headwinds and cross/headwinds. The roads are quite open, so this is sure to have a major impact. Aerodynamics will be key out on the road.

Marlen Reusser (Switzerland) finally secured the world title for the first time in her career in Kigali, Rwanda, last week, and now she returns to a race that she knows all about winning.

Reusser already has three victories to her name in this event, and if she can add a fourth on Wednesday, the Swiss rider will join Ellen van Dijk on four victories and etch her name into the record books.

Anna Henderson (Great Britain) finished eighth in the World Championships, having been within podium contention for the majority of the race. It marked a strong performance from the British rider, considering the amount of climbing involved, and the European Championship route is better suited to Henderson, which bodes well.

Henderson is a two-time national champion, but has come agonisingly close to a major international title, having finished 2nd at the Euros in 2023, and the same position in the Paris Olympics in 2024. If there’s one rider in particular that Reusser will have marked as a major threat, it’s likely Henderson.

Mischa Bredewold (Netherlands) is a former champion in the road race in 2023. A good omen for Bredewold is that the 25-year-old was the winner in her last outing on a time trial bike, claiming stage 4 of the Tour de l’Ardèche just over 60km away in Vals-les-Bains. Bredewold will be in the hunt for the podium and hopes that Reusser is on an off day to potentially capitalise.

Lieke Nooijen (Netherlands) is making her debut, but some strong performances and consistent results indicate the 24-year-old could be a genuine contender for a podium finish. A 5th place in the ITT at the Giro d’Italia Women, 4th in the ITT at the Simac Ladies Tour, and a recent victory at the Chrono Féminin de Gatineau are all impressive considering the competition in the first two cases, and it’s always a confidence boost to get a win, no matter the level.

The host nation will be hoping for a medal with two potential candidates in Juliette Labous (France) and Cédrine Kerbaol (France). Both are well-versed in the discipline and are also fresh off racing the World Championships. Labous was the stronger finisher, ending 7th, and could be a contender for a podium finish.

Mireia Benito (Spain) has illustrated good form at the World Championships, ending 10th in the time trial, before an active road race performance which resulted in 22nd. The three-time defending Spanish Champion has never previously stood out in the European Championships, with 20th in 2024 a career best, but this year could be very different with top 3-5 potential.

Former Olympic road race champion Anna Kiesenhofer (Austria) is often there or thereabouts in this event, having finished in positions ranging from 5th to 11th consistently over the last six editions. Having finished 17th in the World Championships, the Austrian could have good legs coming into this one and might be an outsider for a podium finish.

There could also be a surprise name or two in and around the top five based on the startlist.

Lotte Claes (Belgium) caused one of the biggest upsets of the season by winning Omloop het Nieuwsblad back in March. Could the 33-year-old cause another upset with a top 5 performance in her debut, or could Julie De Wilde (Belgium) do so?

Lisa Klein (Germany) finished runner-up in this event six years ago and has since transitioned to a mixture of road and gravel racing. However, if the German can roll back the years with a strong performance, a top five could be possible. Fransikza Brauße (Germany) ended second in the national championships 

Agnieszka Skalniak-Sójka (Poland) has experience in this event, having finished 10th in 2022 and 13th in 2024. The Polish rider is reliable and could be one to land a personal best result on Wednesday. Rebecca Koerner (Denmark), the Danish Champion, was ninth on her debut twelve months ago.

Dana Rožlapa (Latvia) is a nine-time national champion in the discipline and at 45 years of age, will be one of the oldest athletes competing at the Euros. Rožlapa came close to a maiden top 10 finish last year, ending 12th, and could have a great chance to finally do so this time around.