From the start in Andermatt it was all about climbing. On the Gotthardpass there was a battle, but the escapees never got much space from the peloton. The coming and going of attacks continued almost the entire stage. Tolhoek and Gijs Leemreize were finally in the large group that could fight for the stage victory. 


After Leemreize’s work, Tolhoek showed himself several times, but the Dutchman could not get rid of his fellow escapees. Dane Andreas Kron won the stage after the disqualification of Rui Costa. Sam Oomen moved up one place in the general classification due to the loss of a competitor. He is now the new number seven

“Since the Ruta del Sol I’m in very good shape”, Tolhoek said after the mountain stage. “I think I raced well, but it’s a pity that I didn’t make it today. Uphill I was definitely one of the better ones, but I really had to gamble all the time. On the steep parts I tried to let them go. I rode a good race and can’t blame myself. This was the third attempt this week, maybe the fourth time I will succeed. The penny has to drop in the right direction once. Hopefully that will happen this week.”

Sports director Addy Engels had seen an attractive race from start to finish. “Antwan and Gijs showed themselves. The other guys were also where they needed to be. Antwan was very strong today. I think he was one of the better guys in the leading group. He’s a real climber who prefers a more difficult finish. Then you have to gamble and he did. I also think it’s really nice to see that Gijs can show himself at WorldTour level in his debut year with the pros.”