Florian Lipowitz passed the first mountain test against cycling superstar Tadej Pogacar at the Tour de Romandie. The 25-year-old finished second on the 171.2-kilometer first stage, which started and finished in Martigny, as part of a four-man leading group. The Slovenian Pogacar secured victory in the sprint. The Frenchman Lenny Martinez came third ahead of the Norwegian Jörgen Nordhagen.
Pogacar took the lead in the overall ranking of the tour through western Switzerland. He is now seven seconds ahead of Lipowitz. “It wasn’t planned, but it’s nice to have won. There was a headwind in the last 22 kilometers, so I was happy not to be alone.”said Pogacar, who is driving in French-speaking Switzerland for the first time.
Pogacar attacks on the only longer climb
On the largely flat stage, the professionals only had to overcome one longer climb – but it was tough. The almost nine kilometer long route to Ovronnaz had an average gradient of 9.8 percent, significantly higher than legendary tour climbs such as Alpe d’Huez. Pogacar attacked as expected, initially only Martinez could follow.
Lipowitz gradually picked up his rhythm and closed the gap. Last year’s third-place finisher drove over the pass with Pogacar and Martinez. In the valley, Nordhagen caught up with the trio, and a sprint had to decide who won the day.
