Featured image courtesy of BettiniPhoto
As the Critérium du Dauphiné winds down another key race begins. There is always an option when it comes to preparing for the Tour de France, go for the Dauphiné or actually ride the Tour de Suisse, a nine-day race around Switzerland. Seeing how the form is, going for a crucial stage win and even testing yourself on the TT bike, year after year since 1933, the Tour de Suisse is the final stage race before the Grand Départ.
This will be the 84th edition of the race, which was postponed last year for obvious reasons. Instead of a nine-day race this year’s Tour is actually eight days long, the shortest edition since the 1960s. But more than anything the route the riders will follow is the exact same one that was planned for 2020. Eight days across Switzerland with flat, hilly and mountainous terrain, plus two time trials – it will be a course designed for a talented mix.
Dutch sensation and making his Grand Tour debut at the Tour, Mathieu van der Poel starts, as does the world champion Julian Alaphilippe. Defending champion Egan Bernal has just won the Giro d’Italia so will not be seen in Switzerland, the INEOS Grenadiers instead taking former Giro champion Richard Carapaz as their designated leader.
It will also be a welcome sight to see former Giro winner Tom Dumoulin back on his bike. The Dutchman stepped away from the sport at the start of this year, and is now eyeing up the Tokyo Olympics. The Tour de Suisse will give an indication as to how well he’s doing.
The Route
From Sunday 6th June to Sunday 13th June, the 84th edition of the Tour de Suisse kicks off with a short individual time trial in Frauenfeld. 10.9 km in length, mostly flat with some technical corners before some longer straight roads to the finish.
Stages 2 and 3 are both hilly affairs. First comes a 183 km test starting in Neuhausen am Rheinfall before taking on some punchy climbs at Ghöch (8.3 km at 4.7%), Oberricken (7.8 km at 5.1%) and then Litschstrasse (2.4 km at 8.3%). The final 10 km is a downhill to the finish so expect some attacks on the Litschstrasse.
One day later the second of two hilly stages see more undulating terrain again 183 km long. No major climbs on the route but 2,500 m of climbing plus a false flat at the finish will make it a gruelling day to conclude Stage 3.
There are no easy days at the Tour de Suisse and Stage 4 is no exception to the rule. A 171 km route where the Saanenmöser climb in the finale is what all the riders will be focused on. At 7.5 km and an average gradient of 4.4%, it isn’t the hardest climb in the world but it should distance the stragglers and suit the fast men who can get over summits. A 9 km descent into Gstaad could favour a breakaway as Danish rider Christopher Juul-Jensen knows all too well. He soloed into Gstaad ahead of a chasing pack of 60 riders.
Stage 5 will act as transition towards the harsh mountains to come. The Col du Pillon at 6.8 km with a 5.1% gradient will be sting in the tail but a new 8 km hairpin climb up to Bratsch followed by a descent and then another 7 km ascending to Leukerbad will be a real kick in the pants.
Stage 6 is where the high terrain really comes into play. 130 km of non-stop climbing with the Gotthard Pass, 8.5 km at 7.2% seeing the first signs of action before a long descent and then the difficult length of the Lukmanier Pass, 18 km long at 5.6%. Another descent follows before a more moderate incline to the finish at Sedrun.
Stage 7 will play host to the second individual time trial. Whoever is in the leader’s yellow jersey will be going all out to defend or maybe extend their lead here. A 23.2 km route which ascends and descends the Oberalp pass before some switchbacks to conclude in Andermatt.
The finale on Stage 8 has been built up as the ‘Queen stage’ but because of snow is now a damp squib. The route had planned to cover the Susten Pass but, instead we’ll see a 160 km stage that starts and finishes in Andermatt and sees the Oberalp pass once again.
The Lukmanier Pass then follows at 16.5 km in length with a 5.3% gradient. The Gotthard Pass comes next, scaled from its more difficult south side, 13 km at 6.8%. The descent into Andermatt is followed by flat kilometres to the line, where the winner of the 84th Tour de Suisse will be revealed to us all.
Four riders to watch
It is a shortened edition of the Tour de Suisse but that doesn’t mean that the big names haven’t arrived. With the Dauphiné ending as the Tour de France draws near, lots of names are preparing for the three-week trip around France but there are also others who are making a slow return to the sport.
His mountain biking exploits are well known in the past few months but we have not seen Mathieu van der Poel on the road since his second place at the Tour of Flanders. The second Monument of the year seems a long way gone now but at this Tour de Suisse, fans are waiting in anticipation to see what the Dutch superstar can produce.
26-years-of-age and an elusive Grand Tour debut at the Tour to come, the expectation on his shoulders is hard to say. Who is Mathieu van der Poel? An aggressive racer that has won Strade Bianche and has a Monument to his name, on top of some phenomenal stage wins at Tirreno-Adriatico last March.
He won’t be acting as lead-out man for a sprinter at the Tour and he certainly won’t be a GC contender so attacking the race and going for stage wins will be the priority in Switzerland and France. One thing is for sure, a race is never boring when Mathieu van der Poel starts.
Just like the Dutchman, we haven’t seen much from a Frenchman since the Spring either. The world champion Julian Alaphilippe has kept a low profile as he prepares for the Tour and then a trip to Tokyo, but what can we expect in Switzerland? For the first time in his career Alaphilippe has decided to skip the Dauphiné and make his Tour de Suisse debut. With two-time trials and more mountainous terrain than the Dauphiné, it will be a test of the rainbow jersey’s ability among high altitude.
Julian Alaphilippe was France’s darling in 2019 after wearing the yellow jersey for so long and coming close to a first French Tour victory since 1985, he hung on to a fair degree when the going got tough. Yet since finishing fifth overall at the Tour two years ago, Alaphilippe hasn’t finished inside the top-ten of a World Tour race ever since.
Stage wins in Switzerland and a good week attacking the race will be a huge boost before the Tour.
Who can realistically win the Tour de Suisse overall? The main man to look out for is Richard Carapaz, the 28-year-old Ecuadorian and 2019 Giro d’Italia champion. With Egan Bernal already winning the recent Giro, INEOS Grenadiers have one Grand Tour in the bag during a season where they’re capable of triumphing at all three Grand Tours. The Tour will be the hardest one to crack with two Slovenians in Primož Roglič and defending champion Tadej Pogačar seemingly unstoppable, but former champion in 2018 Geraint Thomas looks set to be designated leader.
Carapaz is the one rider who stands out above the rest and it’s interesting that he’s been given his own free role in Switzerland when at the Dauphiné, INEOS have selected Thomas, last year’s Tour third-placed rider Richie Porte and the 2020 Giro d’Italia champion Tao Geoghegan Hart. With Carapaz the outright leader he has an opportunity to stake his claim as potential Tour de France champion come July.
2021 has so far seen some promise but the Ecuadorian has yet to fly supreme compared to what we saw in 2020. After Bernal had to leave the Tour, Carapaz had a chance to attack the race and even helped team-mate Michał Kwiatkowski to a first Grand Tour stage win. His performance to finish second overall at the Vuelta behind Primož Roglič.
INEOS may yet arrive at the Tour with four key cards to play. Geraint Thomas looks set to be designated leader alongside Porte, Geoghegan Hart and Carapaz as his domestiques. They will no doubt counter-attack and help but it could get uncomfortable internally if Richard Carapaz appears stronger than Thomas this July. Lots of strategic and tactical thinking ahead for the INEOS Grenadiers.
Last but not least it will be a pleasing sight to see Tom Dumoulin back on the bike. It was nothing more than a shock to hear of Dumoulin’s decision to step aside, it genuinely looked as if his road career was gone. An unfortunate crash that ended his 2019 Giro d’Italia hopes was the catalyst and sadly he hasn’t got back to his best.
Taking time outside the spotlight isn’t a bad thing but now the Dutchman is back where he belongs. Winning the Tour de Suisse is not what fans will expect, it doesn’t matter if he finishes last on the general classification. At 30-years-of-age, Tom Dumoulin is a model for elite athletes that can suffer from pressure and mental health, yet take the time to do his own thing and step back. It’s sensible and awe-inspiring but that’s who the Dutchman is, a fine rider who is a privilege to watch.
A respectable performance in Switzerland will be the aim, some dignity and a good ride by Dumoulin is what fans want to see. When he takes to the start ramp on the opening time trial, expect warm and happy feelings for cycling fans.
Not long to go now until the 108th Tour de France. The Dauphiné is almost finished and the Tour de Suisse marks the final packing of the suitcase before the flight takes off. Other races in Belgium, Slovenia as well as the Route d’Occitanie (another smaller stage race in France) are also getting underway, as riders are getting ready for the three week circus over Alps and Pyrennes.
