The upcoming Tour de Suisse will be an emotional one for Team Bahrain Victorious (TBV). Following the tragic loss of Gino Mader one year ago during his home race, they keep his memory alive in every race the team members participate in. This year’s Swiss race sees the first anniversary of his passing on June 16.
Sports director Roman Kreuziger said: “Last year was incredibly tough, and returning to the Tour de Suisse brings back many memories. We want to focus on the positive ones – Gino’s passion, dedication, and enthusiasm. Our aim is to do our best and hopefully, dedicate a win to him.”
TBV welcomes the various activities planned by the race organisers and Mader’s family, including a memorial ride arranged by the #rideforGino association on the anniversary, from Aigle to Villars. Additionally, the organisers, in agreement with the rider’s family, will dedicate the highest point of the race to him with the #rideforGino Mountain Prize for the winner.
Kreuziger adds: “It would be meaningful if one of our riders could win this memorial prize. We don’t have a clear GC leader because we want to see how Damiano Caruso feels after the Giro d’Italia and evaluate his potential.
“He finished the first Grand Tour of the season strongly, so I am confident in his capabilities if he is mentally prepared. Alongside Damiano, we have Wout Poels, who is on the list for the Tour de France. He is in good shape, and some of the finishes suit him well.
“Our team is well-balanced, with Johan Price-Pejtersen, Fran Miholjevic and Andrea Pasqualon supporting in the flat sections and approaching the climbs. We have four climbers, including Finlay Pickering and Torstein Træen. Our focus isn’t so much on the GC, however we aim to finish as high as possible and if we could win a stage that would be amazing.”
The Tour de Suisse kicks off on Sunday in Liechtenstein with a short, flat prologue time-trial.
From Vaduz to Villars-sur-Ollon, the 8-stage race will cover 950km with nearly 19,000 metres of altitude gain. It’s a parcours that suits the climbers, with four mountain finishes in a row on the Gotthard Pass, Carì, Blatten, and Villars-sur-Ollon.
“On stage 2, I hope Andrea (Pasqualon) can perform well in the sprint. Stage 3 is trickier with challenging terrain in the last 50 kilometres and a punchy finish. We need to be ready and race smart,” Kreuziger said.
From stage 4, the race becomes tougher, concluding on the Gotthard Pass after a 34km ascent at 4.6 per cent. “It’s demanding, finishing at around 2000m. It’s all about the legs,” said Kreuziger.
Stage 5 features another challenging climb day with early climbs (5.9km/7.4pc, 8.8km/9.1pc) and an uphill finish in Carì (11.6km/7.6pc).
The Queen stage on June 14 includes the Nufenen Pass, the highest point of this year’s Tour de Suisse. The final two stages, will be around Villars-sur-Ollon, with a mountainous circuit on June 15 and an uphill time-trial on June 16.
Before the Tour de Suisse, Bahrain Victorious will participate in the 60th Grosser Preis des Kantons Aargau, a one-day race today.
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