Tour de Suisse, stage 1 – Marcel Wyss – A prize is always a pleasure –

THE EXCLAMATION

“A prize is always a pleasure,” Marcel Wyss said once he stepped down from the ceremonial podium after receiving the prize for the most active rider of the day.

THE EXPLANATION

Again from Marcel Wyss: “We broke away after eight kilometers, I and three other riders. Unfortunately, I did not succeed in my attempt to take the top points for the best climber’s jersey. We were always kept under control by the peloton. The gap was never enough to give us the freedom to dream about making it to the finish. But that’s the law of our sport, and I am not disappointed.”

THE FACT OF THE DAY

By winning the bunch sprint in Baar, Peter Sagan has added to his number of victories at the Tour de Suisse, now totaling twelve. With that, the Slovakian world champion becomes the sole holder of the record for stages wins ahead of Ferdy Kübler, Hugo Koblet and Fabian Cancellara.

THE PAYOFF

200 – In Euros, that’s the amount Marcel Wyss collected by winning one of the two intermediate sprints during the course of this first stage.

THE ANALYSIS

As given by Rik Verbrugghe, the manager and directeur sportif for IAM Cycling: “Nerves and the terrible weather conditions made the race very difficult. Mathias Frank was protected from wasting too much energy, and in the end, the team was rewarded by Marcel Wyss being awarded the prize for the most combative on the stage.”

Pictures – Elisa Haumesser & BettiniPhoto