With his punch and explosiveness, Marc Hirschi is one of the strongest riders in demanding one-day races. It is precisely these skills that will be in demand on Sunday in the road race at the World Cycling Championships in Zurich.
Marc Hirschi's star is rising for a second time this season. And who knows, maybe his star will even be at its zenith on Sunday. Admittedly, there is a lot of wishful thinking behind this. On the 273 km with 4500 meters of elevation gain, chance winners are out of the question: Tour dominator Tadej Pogacar wants the rainbow jersey at all costs, double Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel wants to become double world champion in Zurich and defending champion Mathieu van der Poel has prepared meticulously. Getting past this trio will be a Herculean task.
Hirschi number 4 with the bookmakers
But predictions are only good until they are disproved in the race. The final count will be made at the end. Perhaps the 26-year-old Swiss can break through the phalanx. A medal, no matter what color, would be a great success. And the bookmakers also see Hirschi as the first challenger to the top 3. Just imagine: The man from Ittigen, where Fabian Cancellara also grew up, switches to Cancellara's Tudor team in 2025 with a World Championship medal.
The path to a medal, and Hirschi has already said this several times and not just with regard to this World Championships, looks like this: "I have to get into a situation where others have had to do more than me before." That means: Stefan Küng and Mauro Schmid have to help, from Hirschi's point of view: With attacks or lead-out work. If, on the other hand, there is only an elimination race to the rear, then it will be more difficult for the Bernese rider.
On a high again
Hirschi seems to have reached every point in his career where he has been before. The U23 world champion from Innsbruck 2018 quickly gained a foothold in the elite: in 2020, he won a stage of the Tour de France, took bronze at the World Championships, won a prestigious classic with the Flèche Wallonne, before finishing the season with a second place at Liège-Bastogne-Liège - due to the coronavirus, the spring classic was raced in the fall. In the years that followed, physical problems set him back before he returned to winning in 2024. After the road race at the Olympic Games, he has strung together five victories, two of them at World Tour level.
The difference to 2020: back then, Hirschi was always competing against the really big names. Since 2021, also because he had to fit into the top team UAE with Tadej Pogacar and was no longer allowed to ride on his own account, he often started in races that were good, but not at the top. Sunday will show where he stands.
