Is Marlen Reusser the favorite to win the Giro d'Italia? The Swiss rider's name is the one bouncing around most among experts, as Elisa Longo Borghini told us yesterday, and many other girls in the group have confirmed she's a marked rider. She has always been clear, never hiding, and from the beginning of the season, she said she would put everything on the Giro. Now that we're finally at the start, we can review the numbers and statistics from her recent races to give our assessment: the Swiss athlete is ready.

Marlen is comfortable talking to the press, joking and laughing when we tell her that everyone says she's one of the favorites. She feels good, the team is strong, and she's ready for the challenge, but as she repeatedly tells us, cycling is raced on the road and danger is always lurking. The Movistar team has truly reborn her, the Spanish formation strongly wanted her to target grand tours and so far she's meeting every plan. Reusser is serene, those difficult seasons seem to have been fortunately left behind, and now she's ready to restart. "Finally, after many difficulties, I can say I'm doing well, I'm in excellent form and I'm satisfied," Marlen tells us. "The entire team is very motivated, and I believe all the results we've achieved so far have been a great stimulus for everyone. The second place at the Vuelta in particular was a fundamental point in this approach, certainly it served me to confirm my preparation, but especially for my teammates, it was a nice gift after hard work."

For the Swiss rider, this is an all-in on the Giro. Marlen has been thinking about it since the start of the season, and every training choice and race has been approached with the goal of being in peak form in Bergamo. After great performances in Spain, she recently won the Tour de Suisse and the national time trial championship, but being at the start with excellent sensations doesn't seem sufficient when facing such an unpredictable route. "It's a difficult Giro to interpret, certainly Monte Nerone will make the difference, but I believe the fourth stage with the Pianezze finish will be fundamental. In today's cycling, however, every day is decisive, even in the flat stages something can happen, you can win and you can risk losing. The Imola finale will also be anything but trivial. I remember the course well because I raced the world championship, and I believe it could completely overturn the standings at the end. The Giro looks truly long and treacherous," Reusser continues, who in March took advantage of the white roads to preview the sixth and seventh stages, two of the key stages of this pink race, without forgetting the Aprica finish, areas she has frequently trained in.

Her only previous Giros were in 2020 and 2021, and in both cases, she was the protagonist of two incredible inaugural team time trials that introduced her to the world. A strong team player and excellent domestique, in recent years she has undergone a personal transformation that now projects her as one of the favorites. But what has really changed? "I've always been quite strong uphill and felt comfortable, but unfortunately I was never able to express myself at my best. In 2021, I finished second at the Vuelta, which was my first major result in a stage race. That's where I started to understand that with some work this could be my path, but then I always found myself racing in support of my teammates and there was no space for me. This is the first time I have an entire team for myself, my teammates support me, encourage me, believe in my potential, and this is beautiful because then the results started to come. Here at the Giro, we have a precise objective and we're not hiding: we want to try to win the general classification. I have incredible girls next to me who will definitely support me at best, but I believe many can have their chance to win a stage." Reusser responds, who meanwhile sees SD Worx, her former team, as the formation to watch out for. "They're all very strong, but I believe the true key to the team is Lorena Wiebes. She's clearly here to win sprints, but on days not suited to her, she can really help her teammates. In recent years, she's improved tremendously uphill, and I expect to see her ready to guide everyone before every climb."

Formally, SD Worx has always declared they're at the Giro only for stages, with the general classification potentially coming as a consequence, but not a priority. Lotte Kopecky already has the Tour as her goal, while Anna Van der Breggen proceeds cautiously, but is that really true? "I don't believe it," Marlen Reusser says laughing, "they're all top-class athletes and if they're in good form, they won't let even the time trial slip away. We'll have to fight from the first to the last day." Meanwhile, it will be a time trial that kicks off the pink race, Reusser's true specialty. Her all-in on the Giro begins here, and very likely this afternoon we might see her in pink.