The first stage consisted of four local laps around Küsnacht. At the start of the uphill section, seven riders formed a leading group. However, their four-minute lead proved not enough to have a chance of winning the stage. On the last climb of the Küsnachter Berg, the classification riders accelerated. There was no chance of breaking away, but the pure climbers created a gap to the strong sprinters. Kuss rode uphill at his own pace and kept up nicely at the front before finishing ninth in the sprint. Stephen Williams won the stage.

“It was a tough stage”, sports director Marc Reef said. “The pace was very high. The classification teams were already in control today and on the last climb, it completely exploded. The strongest remained, and Sepp could follow and compete with the others. That gives us confidence for the coming days. We can build on that. The other guys also showed a good level today.”