Marlen Reusser Hints at Retirement as Paula Blasi Joins Movistar in 2027

Marlen Reusser Hints at Imminent Retirement Following Movistar Roster Additions

Swiss time-trialling star Marlen Reusser has indicated that her professional racing career will conclude soon, pointing to her age and the arrival of Spanish Grand Tour contender Paula Blasi at Movistar for the 2027 season. Speaking at the Tour de France Femmes route presentation, cyclingnews.com reported that Reusser discussed her future in the sport while evaluating the newly revealed 2027 race route.

Reusser, who is currently under contract with Movistar through the end of 2027, acknowledged that at 35 years old she no longer occupies the youngest demographic in the peloton.

Tactical Shifts and the 2027 Tour de France Femmes Route

The 2027 route presentation brought mixed reviews from the Movistar veteran regarding the absence of an individual time trial. Reusser confirmed she would have liked an individual time trial because that does something very different with the GC. It’s not the same. But in any case I love the discipline [of team time trialling], and I think that’s very cool, though she praised the inclusion of a team time trial on stage 3 in London alongside the Ardennes-style profiles of stages 2 and 8.

Reflecting on how the race will unfold, Reusser emphasized that demanding hilly stages will likely dictate the overall standings more than traditional high-mountain setpieces, noting that the big mountains are there, they sound hard, but these hilly stages are even harder in a way, so they can be very crucial for the GC. We saw it last year. Pointing to past editions where transitional stages created major splits in the general classification, she highlighted the technical difficulty awaiting the peloton, adding that Stage 4 of last year’s Tour was a good example of this where it played a major part in sorting out the GC, with Pauline Ferrand-Prévot showing significant signs of weakness that day.

Sometimes it’s like this, we look at the big mountain stages, but often these [hilly] stages are actually the more important.

Addressing the inclusion of the Puy de Dôme climb, Reusser expressed confidence in her ability to handle slopes reaching 12 percent, despite the road typically remaining closed to riders as an ecologically sensitive site, noting I think the Puy de Dôme is closed off to riders right now and adding I think I can manage the slopes [of 12%] well. I have no idea if it’s possible to recon, but if so I’ll do it.

Integrating Paula Blasi into Movistar GC Plans

Blasi arrives at Movistar following a breakthrough 2026 campaign with UAE Team L’IMAD that included victories at La Vuelta Femenina and the Amstel Gold Race, capped by a fifth-place finish at her debut Tour de France Femmes. Reusser noted that Blasi’s skill set makes the Spanish squad well-positioned to target the Tour general classification through dual-leader tactics, reasoning For Paula, I think this Tour route is perfect because when you see the Ardennes-like stages, I think it’s good to have good riders because you can make good tactics and And I think she will want to win the Tour in the future, and I think that’s a nice thing.

When asked whether she would replicate her targeted preparation from the previous July, Reusser smiled and indicated that formal planning with her sports director remains ongoing, stating I am sure my DS is waiting in the back there; we’ll make plans, we have a lot of time to think about what we’re going to do with this race, and we’ll have some projects for sure.