Enrico Battaglin has finished in seventh place for the third consecutive day in the Tour de Suisse. In the fourth stage, Team LottoNL-Jumbo captain Steven Kruijswijk and Koen Bouwman were very attentive and finished in the first peloton, just like the previous three days. 

An early breakaway made it a relatively quiet race day. The rain and colder temperatures played an important role again.

“It was a similar situation during the stage as the past few days”, sport director Addy Engels said. “An early breakaway was established and the peloton controlled the stage until the final climb, and actually on the climb itself as well. The riders developed a very high speed. At the top, a small peloton remained, including Kruijswijk, Bouwman and Battaglin. That was an ideal situation for us.”

Tomorrow, Engels expects the first time gaps in the overall ranking. “It will be a different stage than the last days, with the first mountaintop finish. The rain can play a big role again, especially in the descent of the penultimate climb to Crans Montana. Tomorrow, and in the stage to Arosa, it’s up to the GC guys to battle for the overall win.”