Vlasov takes race lead as COVID strikes Tour de Suisse

COVID-19 struck the Tour de Suisse over night before the start of stage 5 with  Adam Yates and Jumbo-Visma team abandoning

4 Jumbo-Visma team members Adam Yates (Ineos Grenadiers) tested positive for COVID 19.

As a result, the whole of the Jumbo-Visma team, Adam Yates (Ineos Grenadiers), Gino Mader and Hermann Pernsteiner (Bahrain Victorious), Yevgeniv Fedorov (Astana-Qazaqstan),  Otto Vergaede (Trek-Segafredo) and Michael Gogl (Alpecin-Fenix), Soren Kragh Andersen and Casper Pederson.

Two GC contenders were wiped of the over standings, Sepp Kuss Jumbo-Visma and Adam Yates INEOS Grenadiers.

Geraint Thomas INEOS Grenadiers looks to be the new favorite for the overall along with Stefan Küng Groupama-FDJ , Marc Hirschi UAE Team Emirates, Jakob Fuglsang Israel-Premier Tech and Aleksandr Vlasov BORA-hansgrohe.

This comes just two weeks before the Tour de France begins in Copenhagen, with two of the Jumbo-Visma riders on the Tour of Switzerland, American Sepp Kuss and Rohan Dennis of Australia, due to be part of their Jumbo-Visma Tour de France squad.

The Tour de France is their main target for the season with their hopes primarily resting on Slovenian Primoz Roglic and Dane Jonas Vingegaard.

They warmed up for it in perfect style with Roglic finishing first and Vingegaard second in the Criterium du Dauphine which ended last Sunday.

"Team Jumbo-Visma doesn't reveal who became a victim of the covid infection," they said.

"For the time being, the situation has no consequences for the Tour de France shortlist, although we have to wait and see what happens in the next few days."

Five riders went away in the break Johan Jacobs (Movistar),  Alexander Kamp (Trek-Segafredo), Silvan Dillier (Alpecin-Fenix), Anthony Turgis (TotalEnergies) and Claudio Imhof (Switzerland).

With 52 km to go, Alexander Kamp (Trek-Segafredo) and Silvan Dillier (Alpecin-Fenix) rode away. With 40km on the second lap of the finishing circuit, reigning Swiss National Champion Dillier soloed away. Behind Ineos Grenadiers upped the pace and started to reel the breakaway back.

Reigning Swiss National Champion Dillier was stil out front on the last lap with 25 km to go.

With 20 km to Remco Eveepoel and a small group of riders were dropped but got back on, on the descent. Diller was caught with 15 km to go.

Fulgsang upped the pace, with agroup of 14 riders including Piccock, Thomas, Vlasov, Sachmann following. 

With 4 km to go, Fuglsang attacked and Thomas, Schachmann, Vlasov and Powless chasing.

With 1 km to go, it was Powless, Thomas, Fuglsang, Vlasov and Schachmann left.

In the final uphill sprint Vlasov won ahead of Powless.

2022 Tour de Suisse Stage 5 Top 10

1 RUS Aleksandr Vlasov BORA-hansgrohe 04:30:28
2 USA Neilson Powless EF Education-EasyPost + 00
3 DEN Jakob Fuglsang Israel-Premier Tech + 00
4 GBR Geraint Thomas INEOS Grenadiers + 00
5 ITA Diego Ulissi UAE Team Emirates + 05
6 AUT Felix Großschartner BORA-hansgrohe + 06
7 SUI Stefan Küng Groupama-FDJ + 06
8 COL Sergio Higuita BORA-hansgrohe + 06
9 GER Maximilian Schachmann BORA-hansgrohe + 06
10 SUI Sebastien Reichenbach Groupama-FDJ + 09

2022 Tour de Suisse GC after Stage 5

01 RUS Aleksandr Vlasov BORA-hansgrohe 22:16:56
02 DEN Jakob Fuglsang Israel-Premier Tech + 06
03 GBR Geraint Thomas INEOS Grenadiers + 07
04 DEN Andreas Kron Lotto Soudal + 14
05 SUI Stefan Küng Groupama-FDJ + 16
06 COL Sergio Higuita BORA-hansgrohe + 16
07 USA Neilson Powless EF Education-EasyPost + 28
08 AUT Felix Großschartner BORA-hansgrohe + 40
09 SUI Sebastien Reichenbach Groupama-FDJ + 43
10 NOR Andreas Leknessund Team DSM + 44