Stage 4 of the Tour of Switzerland: Rüschlikon

EsCiclismo.com · Road Competition · 06/12/2024

With the Italian cyclist Alberto Bettiol (EF Education-EasyPost) as the new leader of the race, the Tour de Suisse competes today, Wednesday, for its fourth day, a 170.4-kilometer online stage that will take cyclists from the city of Rüschlikon to the St. Gotthard Pass, a first-class pass that promises to be decisive for the candidates for the general classification.

The stage will begin in Rüschlikon, a town on the shores of Lake Zurich, and cyclists will quickly encounter the first significant challenge, the Albispass, a third-category elevation whose summit is located at kilometer 5.3. This early climb will be crucial to forming the breakout of the day.

After descending from the Albispass, the cyclists will face flatter terrain until reaching the final section, where they will begin the ascent to Schöllenen (2nd Cat. with 4.5 km at 7.6%). Without a subsequent descent, they will face the ascent to the St. Gotthard Pass, which stands as the judge of the stage. With 8.1 kilometers of ascent at 6.7% average gradient, this first-class mountain pass will be decisive not only for the stage, but also for the general classification.

The favorites for the stage win and those with overall aspirations will be keeping an eye on any movement in the peloton. Alberto Bettiol will seek to defend his yellow jersey against rivals such as Ethan Hayter (Ineos Grenadiers) and Stephen Williams (Israel-Premier Tech), both just 6 seconds away in the general classification.

Teams like UAE Emirates, with João Almeida and Adam Yates, are expected to try to impose a strong pace on the final climb to wear down their rivals. Likewise, the role of the gregarious will be fundamental to protect their leaders and position them well for the decisive escalation.

After the mandatory passage of the cyclists through the signature control and the protocol cutting of the ribbon by the local authorities, the starting flag will be given at 12:30 p.m. (CEST) and the arrival of the first to the top of the Gotthard Pass is scheduled for around 5:00 p.m.

The weather forecast calls for partly cloudy skies with temperatures around 12°C at the top of the Gotthard Pass.

Data from the 4th stage of the Tour of Switzerland 2024

– Exit: Rüschlikon / 12:30 p.m. (CEST)
– Arrival: Saint Gotthard Pass / 5:00 p.m.
– Distance: 170.4 km.
– Accumulated positive slope: 3,551 m.
– Estimated average speed: 39 km/h.
– Scoring mountain ranges:
. Km. 5.3: Albispass (3rd Cat. with 3.3 Km at 6.9%)
. Km. 156.9: Schöllenen (2nd Cat. with 4.5 Km at 7.6%)
. Km. 170.4 (Finish): Saint Gotthard Pass (8.1 Km to 6.7)
– Intermediate Sprint:
. Km. 135: Silenen.

– Classifications after the 3rd stage
– Teams, cyclists and numbers
– Route, stages, profiles and route book
– TV, broadcast times and where to watch live