tour suisse 2023 stage 5

Tour de Suisse: Ayuso conquers Albulapass as Skjelmose takes yellow

Gall loses lead in closing metres, Evenepoel battles to limit losses

Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates) claimed the biggest victory of his young and immensely promising career, soloing to victory on the queen stage 5 of the Tour de Suisse .

The 20-year-old Spaniard attacked on the upper slopes of the Albulapass - one of three high-mountain passes on the 211km menu - and made no mistake on the 10km descent into La Punt.

He raised his arms for his second WorldTour win after taking a stage of last month's Tour de Romandie, with a performance that also put him back into overall contention after struggling on the previous stage.

Almost a minute after Ayuso had crossed the line, Mattias Skjelmose (Trek-Segafredo) led home a chase group of GC contenders to take second place, six bonus seconds, and - having given it up on Wednesday - the yellow jersey.

Race leader Felix Gall (AG2R Citroën) was in that group and indeed ripped the race apart on the Albulapass but conceded four seconds in the final dash for the line, and with it, the yellow jersey.

Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious) claimed the final spot on the podium as Rigoberto Urán (EF), Romain Bardet (DSM), and Wilco Kelderman (Jumbo-Visma) made up the rest of that group.

A rollercoaster race issued a fresh blow to Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep), who was distanced in a split at the top of the Albulapass and conceded 26 seconds - plus 10 bonus seconds - to Skjelmose.

"Yesterday, I had no legs and just had to suffer, but today I felt much better," Ayuso said. "It was a hard stage, long with lots of climbing and altitude, but in the end, when the pace increased, I started feeling better and better."

The 211km queen stage took the riders over the Furkapass (16.5km; 6.4%) and Oberalppass (10.7km; 5.6%) in the opening half of the route, before a long approach to the Albulapass (17.4km; 6.8%) and the short drop into La Punt.

After a chaotic start, things were calm until the final 7km of the final climb, where Gall's AG2R teammates suddenly shredded the peloton, and the Austrian climber quickly opened the race.

Ayuso was one of only four riders who could follow - along with Bilbao, Kelderman, and Bardet - and after a kilometre or so, it was clear he had another gear as he issued a searing attack.

He flew across the gap to the three remaining riders from the day's large breakaway and extended his lead over his GC rivals to a minute by the summit.

Skjelmose, who was reluctant to chase on Wednesday, was forced into defence mode after being unable to react to Gall's opening salvo, but he managed to rescue the situation as his group came back to the Gall group and even distanced Evenepoel over the top of the final climb.

However, Ayuso had flown the nest and moved up to third overall at just 18 seconds, very much a danger man given the strength of his time trialling. Gall slips to second at eight seconds as Evenepoel drops to fourth at 46 seconds, now giving himself a huge ask to bank on Sunday's final-day time trial. Bilbao rounds out the top five at 57 seconds as the only other rider within a minute of the yellow jersey.

How it unfolded

The queen stage of the Tour de Suisse started out in suitably chaotic fashion, with the major climbs of the Furkapass and Oberalppass coming back-to-back after barely 25km of flatter introduction.

It was just ahead of the Furkapass (16.5km; 6.4%) that things kicked off, and it wasn't so much a breakaway as a full-on peloton split. No fewer than 39 riders managed to get themselves out in front for the lower slopes of the climb. The carnage continued as the climb bit, and that 39-man move shattered, with a similar shelling-out process in the peloton, which remained at a high pace and not far behind.

At the top of the Furkapass, there were 12 riders left in the lead, but that swelled to 18 by the end of the descent and to 19 on the lower slopes of the Oberalppass (10.7km; 5.6%). Establishing itself as the breakaway of the day, the full composition of that 19-man group was: Wout van Aert (Jumbo-VIsma), Michael Gogl (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain Victorious), Sergio Higuita and Marco Haller (Bora-Hansgrohe), Neilson Powless (EF), Stefan Kung (Groupama-FDJ), Rui Costa (Intermarche-Circus-Wanty), Gorka Izagirre and Oier Lazkano (Movistar), Ewen Costiou (Arkea-Samsic), Matteo Sobrero and Chris Juul-Jensen (Jayco-AlUla), Quinn Simmons (Trek-Segafredo), Marc Hirschi (UAE), Hugo Houle and Krists Neilands (Israel-Premier Tech), Pascal Eenkhoorn (Lotto-Dstny), Yannis Voisard (Tudor).

At the top of the Oberalppass after 71km, that group had opened a lead of 2:45 over the main peloton. Eenkhorn, having been second to the top of the Furkapass, took maximum KOM points to take the provisional lead of the mountains classification.

There was then a long lull, with a good 100km before the next major difficulty. The descent soon shallowed out into a long period of gentle downhill, with a run through the valley interrupted only by a small uncategorised climb. This portion of the race saw a stable situation, with the 19-man breakaway continuing to ride together just over three minutes ahead of the peloton.

After that short climb, there was some action in the break as Simmons attacked and Kung and Van Aert followed, splitting the large and unruly group with 40km to go. 13 riders made this first selection, the ones missing out being Juul-Jensen, who soon dropped back to the bunch while a group of five chased at a minute: Izaguirre, Neilands, Costiou, Voisard, Haller.

In amongst the action, Van Aert claimed the intermediate sprint, as the injection of pace saw the gap rise above four minutes as AG2R controlled the peloton. The road was already dragging up towards the Albulapass (17.4km, 6.8%), and the gap dipped back down to 3:30 as other GC teams started to battle for position towards the front.

The final climb

On the lower slopes of the final climb, Hirschi and Eenkhoorn were the first to be dropped from the break. After a brief plateau following the first few kilometres, things started to heat up. QuickStep took command of the bunch, while Powless attacked up front to draw out Rui Costa and Tiberi. The rest of the group fragmented, and it properly burst open when Simmons piled on the pressure, dropping Kung, Van Aert, Houle, and Lazkano as he made his way toward the leader with Higuita in tow. However, just as he was making contact, the US rider blew up and slipped back, just like the Colombian.

In the bunch, with the gap at 2:20 8km from the summit, DSM assisted in the pace-making, followed by a fiercer turn by AG2R, and it soon blew the peloton apart. Less than a kilometre later, 6km from the summit, Gall attacked. The damage continued as only four riders could follow: Ayuso, Kelderman, Bardet, and Bilbao. They soon found Van Aert from the break, who drove it on - in the interests of Kelderman - for a kilometre before dropping. Behind, Skjelmose was forced into chasing in a group that also contained Evenepoel.

Powless, Costa, and Tiberi survived out front for the 'Tissot Kilometre' on the upper reaches of the climb, taking the bonus seconds out of the equation of the GC battle. However, Ayuso attacked from the first GC group and flew across the gap. He first picked off Powless, who faded after a volley of accelerations, before easing clear of Tiberi and Costa 1500 metres from the summit.

Bardet dropped from the Gall/Kelderman/Bilbao group as Ayuso opened a lead of 50 seconds, while Simmons turned to helping Skjelmose limit the damage. Evenepoel even lost contact as that group split when closing in on the Gall group.

At the top of the Albulapass, with just a 9.6km descent to go, Ayuso led solo with a 35-second lead over Tiberi and Costa, 1:00 over Gall, Kelderman, and Bilbao, 1:12 over Skjelmose, Bardet, Sheffield, and 1:20 over Evenepoel and Uijtdebroeks.

On the descent, the first two chase groups stitched back together, with the exception of Magnus Sheffield, who crashed. But Ayuso was well clear, and he maintained his advantage all the way to the line, where he celebrated by pointing to his right leg, a possible nod to the tendinitis issue that delayed his season start but doesn't seem to be holding him back in any way now.

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Patrick is an NCTJ-trained journalist, and former deputy editor of Cyclingnews, who has seven years’ experience covering professional cycling. He has a modern languages degree from Durham University and has been able to put it to some use in what is a multi-lingual sport, with a particular focus on French and Spanish-speaking riders. Away from cycling, Patrick spends most of his time playing or watching other forms of sport - football, tennis, trail running, darts, to name a few, but he draws the line at rugby.

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Ayuso Wins Stage 5 of Tour de Suisse

News & results.

Thursday’s stage 5 of Tour de Suisse 2023 was a 211-kilometer mountainous ride from Fiesch to La Punt. The long stage features no less than two Hors Categorie climbs – the Furkapass and the Albulapass – and the Category 1 climb Oberalpass.

Jumbo-Visma’s Wout Van Aert launched a solo attack after seven kilometers of today’s stage 5. Later, he was joined by thirty-five other riders. As the riders entered the first climb of the day, the front group was reduced to nineteen riders. Beyond Van Aert, the group featured notable riders such as Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost), Sergio Higuita (Bora-Hansgrohe), Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ), Rui Costa (Intermarche-Circus-Wanty), Gorka Izagirre (Movistar Team), and Marc Hirschi (UAE Team Emirates). The advantage of the front group increased to more than three minutes.

With twenty-one kilometers left Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost Cycling Team) launched an attack on the Albulapass climb. He was joined by Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain-Victorious), Stefan Küng (Team DSM), and Oier Lazkano (Movistar Team). They had a 02:30 minute advantage over the main peloton.

A chase group featuring five riders was established behind the front group. The chasers were Sergio Higuita (Bora-Hansgrohe), Rui Costa (Intermarche-Circus-Wanty), Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma), Quinn Simmons (Trek-Segafredo), and Hugo Houle (Israel-PremierTech).

Further small chase groups were between the front group and the main peloton group and there was much rider rotation between the groups as the climb progressed.

Lazkano was dropped from the front group with nineteen kilometers left. Perhaps he hadn’t focused sufficiently on hydration in the hot weather conditions?

Powless accelerated with fifteen kilometers left, but Costa and Tiberi were able to follow. Simmons was chasing twenty seconds behind the front trio. 

Behind them Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates) attacked solo from the Van Aert, Felix Gall (AG2R-Citroen), Pello Bilbao (Bahrain-Victorious), Wilco Kelderman (Jumbo-Visma) group. Ayuso was riding at an impressive speed and closed in on the front trio. Menawhile, Powless was surprisingly dropped by Tiberi and Costa. 

Ayuso had a twenty-nine second lead over the chasers at the top of the Albulapass. He was riding at a very impressive speed and is known to have great skills on descents.

Ayuso won the queen stage of Tour de Suisse in 05:23:02. Trek-Segafredo’s Mattias Skelmose had advanced in the final kilometers and crossed the finish line in second place, 54 seconds behind the stage winner. Bilbao completed the stage podium, while Rigoberto Uran (EF Education-EasyPost) was fourth across the line. Team DSM’s Romain Bardet finished fifth.

In the general classification Skjelmose is the new leader of Tour de Suisse 2023. Skjelmose is eight second ahead of Gall, while Ayoso is eighteen seconds behind the Dane.

Stay tuned to Roadcycling.com for additional coverage from Tour de Suisse 2023 and please click to visit Wiggle to buy bike equipment and apparel.

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Dwars door Vlaanderen

Women's dwars door vlaanderen, gp miguel indurain, men's tour of flanders, women's tour of flanders, ronde de mouscron (women), tour of basque country, women's scheldeprijs, scheldeprijs, paris-roubaix femmes avec zwift, paris-roubaix, giro d'abruzzo, women's de brabantse pijl, de brabantse pijl, tour du jura, ayuso powers to stage 5 win, skjelmose grabs lead at 2023 tour de suisse.

Juan Ayuso won the brutal fifth stage of the 2023 Tour de Suisse on Thursday, and Mattias Skjelmose took the overall lead.

Ayuso surged clear 13 kilometers from the line on the final part of the climb up Albulapass on a mountainous 211-kilometer stage.

The Team UAE rider increased his advantage as he hit speeds of more than 90kph on a long, hair-raising descent to the finish at La Punt.

The 20-year-old Spaniard, who last year became the youngest top-3 finisher in the Spanish Vuelta, missed the start of the season with a problem in a tendon in his lower leg.

As he crossed the line Thursday, he lifted his right foot off the pedal and slapped his calf.

The day before, Ayuso had not been able to keep up with stage winner Felix Gall on the final climb. On Thursday, he overpowered his rivals.

"The body is the body," Ayuso said at the finish. "Yesterday, I had no legs and just had to suffer, then today, at the end, I felt much better. It was a very hard stage, a lot of climbing, a lot of altitude, so it was very tough."

Skjelmose, of Trek-Segafredo, sprinted to grab second, 54 seconds later, collecting a six-second bonus.

The Dane took the overall lead from Austria's Gall, of AG2R-Citroen, who faded in the home straight and was a further four seconds back in eighth place.

Belgian world and Vuelta champion Remco Evenepoel, who started the day in second place, faltered on the last climb and was unable to catch his main rivals on the descent, finishing 1 minute, 20 seconds behind Ayuso.

Skjelmose leads Gall by eight seconds, with Ayuso up to third, 18 seconds off the lead. Evenepoel at 46 seconds.

The race continues Friday with a hilly 215.3-kilometer ride to Oberwil-Lieli. It ends Sunday with a 25.7-kilometer time trial. 

On his comeback in the Tour of Romandie in April, Ayuso won the time trial.

"It's going to be a very close battle, but if I can win this race, it'll be one of my greatest achievements," Ayuso said.

• Remco Evenepoel
• Mattias Skjelmose

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Tour de Suisse 2023: The Route

Stage 1 is an ITT around the Sihlsee, an artificial lake. The route is 12.7 kilometres long. And flat.

The Tour de Suisse is far from a sprinters friendly race, but stage 2 could come down to a fast finishers showdown. The route is undulating, the finale flat.

The first uphill finish happens in stage 3 . The last 40 kilometres take in the Col des Mosses – 13.7 kilometres at 4% – before the finale is a 11.1 kilometres long climb at 7.6% to Villars-sur-Ollon.

Stage 4 also finishes uphill. The run-in is flat before the climbing commences with 70 kilometres to go. The finish climb is a mishmash of ascents and descents. It starts out with 7.8 kilometres at 8.6% before short downhills and uphills alternate all the way to the line in Leukerbad. The last 1.2 kilometres go up at 5.2%.

The Queen Stage adds an elevation gain of over 4,700 metres to the mix, but it’s not a mountain top finish. In fact, the finale is a 9.5 kilometres descent from the Abula Pass, which is a 17.4 kilometres long climb with an average gradient of 6.8%.

At 215.8 kilometres, stage 6 is the longest of the Tour de Suisse. One could argue that it’s three races for one. The first part is mountainous, the middle section is predominantly flat, while the last 55 kilometres are hilly. The finish is situated on a 2.5 kilometres climb at 6.7%

The 7th stage is a lumpy race with a flat finale before the Tour de Suisse concludes with a second ITT. Stage 8 is a 25.7 kilometres long race against the clock on an undulating course with two short climbs.

Tour de Suisse 2023: route, profiles, more

Click on the images to zoom

Tour de Suisse 2023 Stage 5

photo credits @WTFK

Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates) won today’s Queen stage of the Tour de Suisse, after the young Spanish rider attacked on the upper slopes of the Albulapass, followed by a superb 10 kilometer descent that earned him a solo vicorty in La Punt.

Almost a minute after Ayuso had crossed the line, Mattias Skjelmose (Trek-Segafredo) led home a chase group of GC contenders to take second place, six bonus seconds, and reclaim the yellow jersey.

Race leader Felix Gall (AG2R Citroën) was part of the chase group on the Albulapass who tried to rein-in Ayuso. But, despite his efforts, he conceded four seconds in the final dash for the line, and with it, the yellow jersey.

Meanwhile, Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious) claimed the final spot on the podium as Rigoberto Urán (EF), Romain Bardet (DSM), and Wilco Kelderman (Jumbo-Visma) made up the rest of that group.

Race Highlights

Wout van Aert (Jumbo-visma) was the first rider to attack, eventually drawing out a group of 37 riders.

From there, the group quickly built up a lead of around three minutes until the final climb.  

On the lower slopes of the Albulapass, Soudal Quick-Step eventually came to fore to set the pace for Remco Evenepoel.

At the front, Neilson Powless attacked with 22km to go, only to be joined by Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain Victorius), Oier Lazkano (Movistar) and Rui Costa (Intermarchse-Circus-Wanty).

In the meantime, Quinn Simmons (Trek-Segafredo) and Sergio Higuita (Bora-Hansgrohe) bridged their to the front. But, the leaders attacked again, swiftly distancing the American rider.  

Meanwhile, Gall was ensconced in a still sizable peloton with no-one seemingly keen to attack him. 

With 16km to go, Ag2R went to the front and began to push the pace, causing Evenpeol to get caught in the split, while Romain Bardet had made his way into yellow jersey group 

With 14km to go, as the front group reached the half-way point of the climb, Powless attacked once again, but to no avail.  

Back down the mountain, Ayuso attacked the yellow jersey group, quickly opening up a slight gap. 

Before long, he was in sight of the front group, with Tiberi launching his own attack off front. But, he was swiftly neutralized, while Powless began to lose contact.

Moments later, Ayuso breezed past Powless, only to pass the remaining breakaway riders as well.

Ayuso later crested the climb with nearly a minute over the yellow jersey and even more on Evenpoel, followed by a fierce descent that saw speeds over 100kph.

With 10 bonus seconds Ayuso was within touching distance of the GC lead, while various chase groups began to coalesce on the descent.

However, Ayuso continued to increases his advantage, clinging to a gap of around a minute under the flame rouge, later holding onto just enough of a lead claim the stage win.

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PREVIEW | Tour de Suisse 2023 stage 5 - Yellow jersey battle continues among Evenepoel, Skjelmose and Gall

Preview . Perhaps the queen stage of the race, stage 5 of the Tour de Suisse will be a proper Alpine day, filled with tough ascents, high altitude and a downhill finish which is well known to the riders.

The final mountain stage. It's the third consecutive tough day in the race and possibly a decisive one. Three passes, but the attacks will come late on. The Albulapass' summit is over 2000 meters in altitude and it's a proper long and steep climb. At the end of a whole 211 kilometers the finale into La Punt should decide a lot in the race.

Departure and arrival times (estimated CET):

- June 15 - Stage 5: Fiesch - La Punt, 211km. From 10:43 a.m. to 4:35 p.m.

Felix Gall turns Tour de Suisse on it's head as he wins stage 4 with long-range attack and takes over yellow jersey

It's a real high-mountain day, although two of it's climbs are in the opening third of the stage. Nevertheless, at any point the Furkapass will cause damage, having it's summit at over 2400 meters of altitude with 16.5 kilometers at 6.4%.

The descent will then lead the riders into the Oberalpass which is 10.7 kilometers at 5.6%. It will set up some more fatigue, to be honest it won't likely have much of an impact on the racing itself throughout the day. The riders descent into a long valley run and then gradually build up towards the decisive climb of the day.

Prize Money 2023 Tour de Suisse €130,100 on offer for teams

Another long one. This is a different finale to those of previous days, the Albulapass ends with just 9.5 kilometers to go before a straight finish into La Punt. The gaps at the top are most likely those at the finish line after a very fast descent.

The climb itself is 18.5 kilometers at 6.6%, it features two sections where the gradients are at a regular 9/10% in it's first half. It then gets more constant in it's final kilometers but at around 7% gaps can always be created. It's a difficult one, the altitude will be key as well with over 2300 meters at the summit, it's a matter of pacing and managing it very well.

Profiles & Route Tour de Suisse 2023

The Weather

The wind will come from the north, covered in the Albulapass, however if it is felt it comes as a crosswind. Not directly preventing attacks on the final climb, however it can make for difficulties attacking if the gusts of wind become strong - which is not assured, I point out.

The Favourites

Felix Gall - Gall's job is mostly done. Unfortunately for him, the losses he sustained in the TT on the opening day mean that despite his great form the GC win is unlikely. He'll have a defensive role here I would imagine, however if he has the same legs he should surely attack. I don't know if he can handle these long ascents as well, but his win today and the inevitable strong GC mean there won't be too much pressure.

Mattias Skjelmose - Skjelmose put in a very tactical and risky ride today, he's got good form and is handling the climbs, here on this long ascent he can just pace it out and not worry about attacks. It'll be a test, I don't know how well he'll deal with the different type of terrain and altitude, but stage 3 has shown that at least until 25-minute efforts he remains just as strong as you'd imagine.

Remco Evenepoel - Evenepoel has decent legs, not his best form but good enough to win the race, and good enough to win this stage. The long climbs, specially the final one, will suit his style. When it comes to the GC he sits only 16 seconds away from Gall and 14 from Skjelmose, on paper he is currently the man to beat for the yellow jersey so he has no need to attack. A conservative day, but today he showed signs that he has the legs to win currently.

2023 Tour de Suisse. Race Center - TV, Startlist, Profile & Previews

The high altitude and longer passes will make for a more difficult challenge then previous days. This may not suit all riders, whilst it can benefit others who prefer this terrain. Colombians Rigoberto Urán and Harold Tejada will be interesting to follow as they'll be in ideal conditions.

The GC fight has been quite open and with several cards to play for the podium or possibly even higher. Pello Bilbao , Wilco Kelderman , Cian Uijtdebroeks and Romain Bardet have all looked good and will all stand chances here, as they fight for GC and stage simultaneously. The likes of Juan Ayuso , Ion Izagirre and Sylvain Moniquet should also be up there in the fight.

The breakaway also stands chances on the day, albeit I recon they're somewhat low. Some brilliant climbers have not had their legs here, if they do happen to give it a go and have a good day however they can take the win here such as Neilson Powless , Sergio Higuita and Jakob Fuglsang . Gino Mäder and Mattia Cattaneo will also be options for this scenario.

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Prediction Tour de Suisse 2023 stage 5:

*** Felix Gall, Remco Evenepoel ** Mattias Skjelmose, Wilco Kelderman, Pello Bilbao * Romain Bardet, Cian Uijjtdebroeks, Rigoberto Urán, Harold Tejada, Sylvain Moniquet, Neilson Powless

Pick : Remco Evenepoel

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Mon 25 Mar 2024

Tue 26 Mar 2024

2023 Tour de Suisse Stage 5 Preview

Fiesch > La Punt 210km

This is a race which is hard to predict. Felix Gall took his first professional win today, and he’s now in the race lead, but with a TT to come he knows he needs more time if he wants to win the GC. Skjelmose and Evenepoel are breathing down his neck and as this stage has over 4500m of climbing, the battle for the yellow jersey is still alive and kicking. Will this be another GC day, or one for the break?

Sunny, but not as warm as previous days.

The Furkapass starts after just 22km of racing, perfect for climbers who want to make the break. It climbs all the way to 2375m above sea level, great for those who love a bit of altitude. 

Next up is the Oberalpass, which was used as the ITT back in 2021 when Urán took a stunning win.

The Albulapass is the final climb of the day, another one that goes up to high altitude. At 2250m above sea level, this is going to hurt. From the crest, there’s a downhill of 9km.

The final stage is a 26k ITT, both Evenepoel and Skjelmose will fancy taking over 2 minutes on Gall, the Austrian has it all to do in this stage. He currently holds a slim advantage over his rivals, he needs a big gap if he wants to win this race. Gall is going to attack on the final climb, that is for sure, but can anyone follow him?

Before I get to that, will anyone chase the break? I think the answer is no, this is a perfect stage for the attackers. With a GC climb near the start, a strong break will form and never be seen again, the GC teams aren’t strong enough to ride it down. I think we’ll see a classic stage of two races within one race. The break will fight for the win, the GC group will fight for the yellow jersey.

In the GC group, the altitude will hurt. Those in difficulty today, I’m looking at you Remco, are not going to find the final stage easy. This is the day Gall needs to make count, he’s clearly in great form, but can he take enough time to ensure he wins the yellow jersey? He took over 1 minute today, a similar performance in this stage will put him in a great position for the GC. With few domestiques to chase, this is another stage where a long-range attack could take home the bacon.

Felix Gall  – today was a brilliant performance, his first professional win. Now he must take a big risk and go full gas for the GC. The TT on Sunday is a worry for him, he needs a big gap to hold off Evenepoel and Skjelmose. Given his current shape, he’s going to attack on the final climb and see what happens. 

Mattias Skjelmose  – he played it well today; he didn’t waste energy chasing on the front. This meant when Evenepoel attacked, he didn’t lost time in the final metres. Remco is looking vulnerable; this is the stage where Mattias can take big step towards winning the GC. Over 4500m of climbing is a big day for him, this is going to be a massive challenge, can he cope with all the climbing?

Remco Evenepoel  – he’s vulnerable just now, like a teenager who’s just told his partner he loves them for the first time. I think they might give him the cold shoulder. 

Pello Bilbao  – did someone say a downhill finish? This is classic Pello country, if the break is chased down, he’s got a great chance of taking the win.

Rui Costa  – breakaway hopeful number 1. He loves this race.

Neilson Powless  – breakaway hopeful number 2. He’s quality.

Tom Pidcock – breakaway hopeful number 3. Can he repeat Alpe d’Huez?

Sergio Higuita  – breakaway hopeful number 4. Doesn’t look in form.

Wout Van Aert  – breakaway hopeful number 5. Will he go for it or wait for the weekend?

Søren Kragh  – breakaway hopeful number 6. Another hoping to win a spot in the Tour team.

Prediction Time

It’s a day for the breakaway.

Time for  Wout Van Aert  to show he’s ready for the Tour de France.

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9-18 JUNE 2024

TdS Fanzone by Primeo Energie

All UCI WorldTeams and the National Team at the Tour de Suisse

A total of 23 teams will line up at the start of the men's Tour de Suisse in Vaduz on 9th June 2024. After one year's absence, the Swiss Cycling National Team will be back along with the 18 UCI WorldTeams plus four additional teams from the UCI ProTeam ranks. All...

We love cycling – and the Tour de Suisse

Primeo Energie and the Tour de Suisse are an ideal fit – both use enormous amounts of energy, and both are firmly committed to sustainability. Electricity and heat, watts and volts: Energy is Primeo Energie’s day-to-day business. It is also at the very heart of the...

GC Winners 2023

Mattias Skjelmose

Trek Segafredo

Marlen Reusser

Team SD Worx

Results & start lists

General classifications 2023, tour de suisse men, tour de suisse women.

You can find all stage results on our Fanzone by Primeo Energie

Stage locations 2024

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Ep 11. 2023 Stage Two Knockout Round - Cherokee Reservoir

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The Stage Two Knockout Round of Major League Fishing's Bass Pro Tour from Jefferson County, TN

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Bruce Springsteen returns to the stage in Phoenix after health issues postponed his 2023 world tour

Bruce Springsteen, left, and Stevie Van Zandt, right, sing during a concert of Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band World Tour 2024 performance Tuesday, March 19, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Bruce Springsteen plays his guitar on stage during his concert of Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band World Tour 2024 performance Tuesday, March 19, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Bruce Springsteen sings on stage during his concert of Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band World Tour 2024 performance Tuesday, March 19, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Bruce Springsteen performs during his concert of Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band World Tour 2024 performance Tuesday, March 19, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Bruce Springsteen, right, is joined by guitarist Nils Lofgren, left, Jake Clemons second from left, on saxophone, Soozie Tyrell, center, on violin, and Max Weinberg, second from right, on drums as they perform during Springsteen’s concert of Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band World Tour 2024 performance Tuesday, March 19, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Bruce Springsteen, left, and Stevie Van Zandt, right, play their guitars on stage during his concert of Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band World Tour 2024 performance Tuesday, March 19, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Bruce Springsteen shouts to the crowd on stage during his concert of Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band World Tour 2024 performance Tuesday, March 19, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

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PHOENIX (AP) — Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band returned to the stage Tuesday evening at the Footprint Center in Phoenix in a triumphant reboot of the Boss’ postponed 2023 world tour.

In September Springsteen, 74, announced his tour would be delayed until 2024 , citing doctor’s advice as he recovered from peptic ulcer disease.

“The Boss” arrived on stage to an audience chorus of “Bruuuuce!” Wearing dark jeans and a rolled up red plaid flannel shirt, he had the energy of a man half his age. His signature “One, two, three, four” was the only thing that separated most songs, showing no signs of his illness from the previous year. Once he shouted, “Good evening, Arizona” the show was off and running.

Springsteen spoke to the crowd briefly about his illness prior to playing his final song “I’ll See You In My Dreams” solo on stage. “Phoenix, first I want to apologize if there was any discomfort because we had to move the show last time. . . . I hope we didn’t inconvenience you too much.”

The 29-song show came in just under three hours, but “The Boss” hardly broke a sweat while showing off a strong voice, all the while dancing, tearing into guitar solos, playing the harmonica and even ripping his shirt open near the end of the show.

On stage with Springsteen was the legendary E Street Band which features drummer Max Weinberg, bassist Garry Tallent, keyboardists Roy Bittan and Charlie Giordano, guitarists Stevie Van Zandt and Nils Lofgren, saxophonist Jake Clemons — nephew of original and still missed sax man Clarence Clemons who died in 2011 — guitarist and violin player Soozie Tyrell, a full horn and brass section and four backup vocalists. The only missing member of the band was Springsteen’s wife, singer and guitarist Patti Scialfa.

Springsteen performed most of the hits in his vast collection, minus “Born In The U.S.A.,” but he added covers “Nightshift” by the Commodores, “Because The Night” by Patti Smith Group, and a surprise: “Twist and Shout” by The Beatles. Fans went wild for “No Surrender,” “Born To Run,” “Rosalita,” “Dancing In The Dark,” “Glory Days” and “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out” that left the rocker grinning from ear-to-ear as he conducted fans singing along like his own chorus.

This year has been particularly challenging for Springsteen. In addition to his health issues, in January his mother, Adele Ann Springsteen, a fan favorite who could frequently be seen dancing at his shows, died . She was 98.

Two days after her death, Springsteen performed at the 2024 MusiCares Person of the Year event, which honored Jon Bon Jovi for his musical achievements and philanthropic efforts.

The 2024 edition of the tour kicked off in Phoenix and ends Nov. 22 in Vancouver, Canada. It hits 17 countries across 52 dates, including a special performance on Sept. 15 where Springsteen will headline the Sea.Hear.Now Festival in his hometown of Asbury Park, New Jersey.