Switzerland will compete in the mixed team time trial at the World Cycling Championships in Zurich on Wednesday afternoon as defending champions, but not as top favorites.
The conditions for the Swiss mixed relay team are not the same as in the last two years, when the team made up of Stefan Bissegger, Stefan Küng, Mauro Schmid, Elise Chabbey, Nicole Koller and Marlen Reusser rode to gold in the still young World Championship discipline.
Of the sextet, only Bissegger and Chabbey will be representing the Swiss colors on Wednesday. Following Reusser's withdrawal last week due to illness, Küng is the second rider to withdraw. The rider from Thurgau is withdrawing of his own free will because he wants to give himself a little more rest in view of Sunday's road race after intensive weeks with the Vuelta. The same applies to Schmid. The mountain biker Koller is not part of the World Championship squad this year.
No pressure
The strong all-rounder Noemi Rüegg is one of the newcomers. The Olympic seventh in the road race, one of this season's rising stars, formulates the starting position as follows: "Without Marlen, we're not in the role of favorites, that's clear. But that's not bad for us, then we can start without pressure." Together with Chabbey and Jasmin Liechti, who surprisingly won the silver medal in the U23 time trial on Sunday, the aim is to "divide up the leadership work".
In the new constellation, without any clear leaders, the route suits the Swiss team. "It's not a classic time trial course, which suits us." Johann Jacobs agrees: "The course is very technical, very hilly. The many bends should suit us." Jacobs will form the men's trio together with Bissegger and U23 rider Fabian Weiss.
Dress rehearsal on the City Circuit
The three men and three women will each have to complete one lap of the 27 km long "City Circuit", where the decisions in the road races will also be made this weekend. The men will start first. As soon as the second rider arrives at the finish line at Sechseläutenplatz, the women will set off on their loop.
Switzerland will be the last of the 20 nations to start the race at 16:08. The top favorites are Italy, which can count on Filippo Ganna and Edoardo Affini, the silver and bronze medal winners respectively in Sunday's individual time trial.
