Race leader Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) added another stage win and more GC time to his successful Tour de Suisse campaign in stage 4’s time trial, beating Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) by a tiny margin in Aalburg.

Pogačar completed the flat 23.7km course in 26:37.99, beating Van der Poel by just 0.04 of a second after the Dutchman had put in a hugely impressive ride and spent a long time in the hot seat, holding off several TT specialists – all but one.

Van der Poel grimaced and smiled as he accepted second on the stage, very narrowly missing out on what would have been first WorldTour TT level. Former TT world champion Tobias Foss (Netcompany Ineos) rounded out the top three, six seconds down on Pogačar.

Latest Videos From

Watch full video here:

Pogačar started the day in the yellow jersey, leading the GC by 2:50, so he has only extended his lead with TT victory, and is now just one day away from winning the Tour de Suisse, the next big goal as he tries to tick off all of cycling’s biggest races.

The Slovenian now leads by a whopping 4:22, and despite being passed by the race leader during the TT, Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost) held on to stay in second overall. Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek) had the better TT than Carapaz, and looked in contention for the win at one point, but faded very slightly in the second half to finish fourth on the stage and move up to third overall at 4:27.

“It was really hot out there, and a really fast parcours,” Pogačar said at the finish. “I felt great. Good legs. I didn’t know that I was fighting for the win; I just wanted to give it all. I knew I was close, but after the intermediate point, I didn’t know any more time [gaps]. I was just trying to go all-out to the finish, and I managed to do it well, and I’m super happy to take the win.

“It’s a great race, I’m happy to take the second win, and tomorrow we fight for another one,” he continued. “It’s a brutal stage, I think, completely different to what we had the last few days, so looking really forward see the legs in the mountains, how they are. Today was a flat TT, tomorrow is one of the biggest mountain stages ever, so I’m really excited to see where I am.”

Mathieu van der Poel impresses

Just like the women’s stage earlier in the day, the men’s TT took place on a flat, 23.7km course around sunny and warm Aarburg. Pogačar started the day with a nearly three-minute lead on GC, so a change in the yellow jersey wasn’t expected, but the stage win and podium position were up for grabs on the penultimate day.

Of the 126 starters, Germany’s Nils Politt (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) set the early serious benchmark time of 27:21 with a strong and measured ride. Alec Segaert (Bahrain Victorious) soon very nearly knocked him off the hot seat, but crossed the line just 0.77 seconds slower to not quite manage it.

The first rider who could beat Politt’s time was his own teammate Tim Wellens, who came in at 26:50, but the real surprise came when Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) put in a hugely impressive and dialled effort to take a whopping 12 seconds out of Wellens’ time.

Several specialists could not come close to Van der Poel’s time, and as more and more riders came and went, it looked more and more like the Dutchman might claim his first WorldTour TT win.

It was a fairly bruising ride for Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), who finished 37 seconds down on Van der Poel, nowhere near his former heights of TT prowess.

Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek) was the first to challenge Van der Poel, going faster at the intermediate time check by four seconds, but after the Dutchman had absolutely railed the second half of the course, Vacek lost time to the finish line and finished 10 seconds down in the end.

Wearing the leader’s yellow skinsuit, Pogačar was the last rider down the ramp to start his effort, which was more for glory and pride rather than any important GC gains. However, that didn’t mean he was going to take it easy, and he sped through the time check fastest of the day, soon also passing his minute man, Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost).

Speeding towards the line, it was impossible to tell if Pogačar was going to just beat Van der Poel’s time or just miss it, but a powerful sprint at the very last saw him just about overhaul the Dutchman by a matter of 0.04 seconds, claiming his second stage win of this race.

GC-wise, the day finished much the same as it started, with Pogačar in pole position holding a commanding lead, expanded from 2:50 to 4:22. Vacek was the main rider to gain, jumping up a spot to third at teammate Andrea Bagioli’s expense.

Foss’ effort also saw him climb up the rankings from 11th to fifth, and Roglič’s ride, though maybe disappointing by his standards, boosted him from 15th to sixth, though that is still six minutes down on the race lead.

Sunday’s final stage looks set to confirm Pogačar’s win, but it is still looking like a hard day out set on loops of the 19km Col de la Croix. And though Pogačar’s lead looks unassailable, there is still plenty of room for movement around the podium, and a stage win is up for grabs.

Subscribe to Cyclingnews for unlimited access to our men’s and women’s Tour de Suisse coverage. Don’t miss any of the breaking news, race analysis, and expert insight as the riders make their final preparations for Le Tour. Plus, access the Cyclingnews app to follow the action on the go! Join today.

Results

Results powered by FirstCycling