Within the BMC Racing Team the leader jersey changed from Stefan Küng to Richie Porte.

At the first mountain arrival of the tour in Leukerbad, Küng held up very well for a very long time. Then the Thurgauer had to let it break off about 4 km before the finish. Küng, with the starting number 13 on his back, was unlucky in the ascent from Montana. Another rider had touched his rear wheel, a change was necessary. Küng had to fight his way back into the field alone. The Swiss may have lacked these forces in the final climb. At the finish line Küng had a time deficit of 3:23 minutes.

Küng was up to Leukerbad for a while on the back wheel of Richie Porte. The Australian: “He told me he’d had better legs, too.” Porte, who is completing his first Tour de Suisse, was delighted to be able to take over the Maillot jaune: “This is a wonderful honour for me. It’s a recognised tour, and ultimately I’m riding for a Swiss team.” In view of the difficult final programme, would it not have been better to take over the leader’s jersey at a later date? Porte: “No, that doesn’t change much. We’ll have to drive anyway…” And then there is another Maillot jaune that Porte wants to conquer – the one of the Tour de France in July.

On the last few kilometers, which were made even harder by the headwind, Mikel Landa (MOV/ESP) was the unlucky fellow who was caught up only 200 m before the finish after a solo advance. “For a few moments after Landa’s attack, I thought for a while that we wouldn’t have enough,” admitted Diego Ulissi (UAE/ITA) after the 30th professional victory of his career. The Italian was also pleased about his track success in Leukerbad for another reason: “I’ve been living in Lugano for five years, and the Tour de Suisse is also highly regarded internationally. Within his Emirates team Ulissi is also seeded for the overall classification: “With a bit of luck I can make it into the top ten riders. I can’t race for overall victory. There are opponents who are faster in the climbs and time trials.”Detail