Underneath text was writte prior to the start of the Tour de Suisse and hasn’t been updated.]
The 2016 Tour de Suisse is a mountainous endeavour with hardly any flat roads. So in order to win you have to be a good climber, that’s one thing, and besides you have to be able to stand the pressure of time in a chrono race. Except for a short opening time trial, the race features hilly time trial on the penultimate day. Which is good news for the likes of Geraint Thomas, Tejay van Garderen and Wilco Kelderman.
From stage 5 onwards the GC will be shaken up as we will be penetrating mountain goats territory. Stages 5. 6 and 7 are all mountain stages with the last one, the Queen Stage to the Rettechbachferner, a glacier high up in the mountains above Sölden, the apotheosis. The closing climg is a 11.4 kilometres toil at 10.8%. Then comes the previously mentioned hilly ITT (at 16.8 kilometres) before the 9-day race is to be concluded with a mountainous stage that ends with a long descent. All in all, a versatile race that should bring a versatile winner.
Contenders who know what’s it like to win the Tour de Suisse are Fabian Cancellara (2009), Fränk Schleck (2010), Rui Costa (2012, 2013, 2014) and Simon Spilak (2015), while Geraint Thomas is the only rider at the start who did win a multiple stage race this season. Last March he took Paris-Nice after a brilliant battle with Alberto Contador.
Favourites Tour de Suisse 2016:
*** Geraint Thomas, Rui Costa, Wilco Kelderman, Tejay van Garderen
** Robert Gesink, Warren Barguil, Gorka Izagirre
* Andrew Talansky, Mathias Frank, Samuel Sánchez, Ion Izagirre
Tour de Suisse 2016: Route maps, height profiles, etc.
Click on the images to zoom
Tour de Suisse Route
Tour de Suisse Riders
Related articles Stage 9: Colombian party - Pantano stage win, López takes the overall - Tour de Suisse 2016 Stage 8: Ion Izagirre wins ITT, Ángel López new leader - Tour de Suisse 2016 Stage 7: Van Garderen wins Queen Stage, Barguil new leader - Tour de Suisse 2016 Stage 6: Weening soloes to victory in horrible weather, Kelderman new leader - Tour de Suisse 2016 Stage 5: Atapuma climbs to victory, Latour new leader - Tour de Suisse 2016 Stage 4: Richeze sprints to victory, Sagan retains in overall lead - Tour de Suisse 2016 Stage 3: Stage win and leader's jersey Sagan after show of strength - Tour de Suisse 2016 Stage 2: Sagan outsprints Richeze, Roelandts takes leader's jersey - Tour de Suisse 2016 Stage 1: Cancellara wins ITT and takes leader's jersey - Tour de Suisse 2016 Route stage 1: ITT in Baar - Tour de Suisse 2016 Route stage 2: Baar - Baar - Tour de Suisse 2016 Route stage 3: Grosswangen – Rheinfelden - Tour de Suisse 2016 Route stage 4: Rheinfelden – Champagne - Tour de Suisse 2016 Route stage 5: Brig-Glis – Carì - Tour de Suisse 2016 Route stage 6: Weesen – Amden - Tour de Suisse 2016 Route stage 7: Arbon – Rettenbachferner/Sölden - Tour de Suisse 2016 Route stage 8: Davos - Davos - Tour de Suisse 2016 More articles Tour de France 2019: Simon Yates wins at Prat d'Albis, Alaphilippe still leader
Tour de France 2019 Route stage 15: Limoux - Prat d'Albis
Tour de France 2019 KOM classification stage 15: Wellens still leader after Pyrenees
Tour de France 2019: Withdrawals
Tour de France 2019: The Route
Tour de France 2019: Riders
Tour de France 2019 Route stage 14: Tarbes - Col du Tourmalet
Tour de France 2019 Route stage 16: Nîmes – Nîmes
Tour de France 2019 Favourites stage 16: Sprint fest in Roman city
Tour de France 2019 Route stage 17: Pont du Gard - Gap
Tour de France 2019 Route stage 18: Embrun - Valloire
Tour de France 2019 Favourites stage 18: Fly down the Galibier
Tour de France 2019 Route stage 19: Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne - Tignes
Tour de France 2019 Favourites stage 19: Attacks on all fronts
Tour de France 2019 Route stage 20: Albertville - Val Thorens
Tour de France 2019 Favourites stage 20: GC battle on mega-long last climb
Tour de France 2019 Route stage 21: Rambouillet - Paris
Tour de France 2019 Favourites stage 21: Elysium sprint of the heroic
Tour de France 2019 KOM classification stage 16
Tour de France 2019 KOM classification stage 17
Tour de France 2019 KOM classification stage 18
Tour de France 2019 KOM classification stage 19
Tour de France 2019 KOM classification stage 20
Tour de France 2019 KOM classification stage 21
La Course 2019: Riders
La Course 2019: The Route
Tour of Britain 2019: The Route
Tour of Britain: Winners and records
Tour de France: Winners and records
Vuelta 2019: The Route
Vuelta 2019: Riders
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 1: Las Salinas de Torrevieja - Torrevieja
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 2: Benidorm - Calpe
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 3: Ibi – Alicante
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 4: Cullera – El Puig
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 5: L’Eliana – Javalambre
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 6: Mora de Rubielos - Ares del Maestrat
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 7: Onda – Mas de la Costa
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 8: Valls – Igualada
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 9: Andorra la Vella – Cortals d’Encamp
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 10: Jurançon - Pau (ITT)
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 11: Saint Palais - Urdax
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 12: Circuito Navarra - Bilbao
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 13: Bilbao - Los Machucos
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 15: Tineo - Santuario del Acebo
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 16: Pravia - Alto de La Cubilla
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 18: Colmenar Viejo – Becerril de la Sierra
Vuelta 2019 Route stage 21: Fuenlabrada - Madrid
Vuelta a España: Winners and records
Clásica de San Sebastián: Recent Winners
BinckBank Tour: Winners and records
Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec: Winners and records
Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal: Winners and records
World Cycling Championships: Winners and records
History of the Tour of Lombardy
Tour of Lombardy: Winners and records
Tour of Flanders 2019: Alberto Bettiol solos to glory
Tour of Flanders 2019 - women: Bastianelli bests Van Vleuten and Ludwig in three-up sprint
Cycling Calendar 2019
Tour of Valencia 2019: Groenewegen wins last stage, Izagirre overall winner
Win a free cycling jersey!
Tour Down Under 2014 Route stage 1: Nuriootpa - Angaston
Race Results Service
