June 21, 2026
It's the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year, and this stage may feel like the longest day on the bike for many of the riders in the peloton. On the menu for the fifth and final stage is 150 km comprised of three laps, 50 km each, around Villars-sur-Ollon and Aigle. The start in Villars-sur-Ollon is part way up the Col de la Croix at 1,400 meters above sea level and the first 8 km of the stage are uphill with sustained sections around 9%. The riders then descend into Aigle with virtually no valley road before completing the full ascent of the Col de la Croix, a 19 km climb that averages 7%. There are two full ascents of the Col de la Croix before one last descent into Aigle and the final climb to Villars-sur-Ollon which, from Aigle, is 9.6 km at 8%. With Tadej Pogačar's form, it's hard to see anyone taking the stage win away from the Slovenian unless a large group is able to get away and break the stranglehold that UAE-XRG has had on the race. What is far more interesting is the race for the podium. Second through ninth place is separated by 1 minute 40 seconds which more than doable on a course with 4,400 meters of elevation gain.
Race Summary
A number of riders did not take the start and even more abandoned before cameras even got rolling. It was another clear blue sky day and also quite warm at 30C (85F) but there were plenty of riders up for a fight. Eleven eventually made the early move including Swiss Champion Mauro Schmid and Paul Double of Jayco AlUla, Lenny Martinez and Afonso Eulálio of Bahrain Victorious, Andrew August of Netcompany-Ineos, Bauke Mollema of Lidl-Trek, Nairo Quintana of Movistar, Louis Vervaeke of Soudal Quickstep, Finn Fisher-Black of Redbull-Bora Hansgrohe, Bart Lemmen of Visma-Lease a Bike, and Mattia Gaffuri of Picnic-PostNL. With 81 km to go, the break was descending towards Aigle for the second time with one full ascent of Col de la Croix and a half remaining before the finish. The peloton was still largely together but UAE-XRG were controlling the break at just 1 minute 50 seconds.
The break reached the streets of Aigle, passed the UCI headquarters and the wine museum at the Château d'Aigle, with 65 km to go and a gap of 90 seconds. UAE-XRG took the opportunity through town to fill up on bottles, ice, and gels, which allowed the gap to creep back out to 2 minutes on the early slopes on the Col de la Croix. As the vineyards disappeared from view and the riders gained elevation, Double was pushing in the break and stretching the group in the process.
Through the Tissot Sprints with 13 km still to climb, the gap had grown to 2 minutes 25 seconds and the break was largely still together and working to increase their advantage. Double led the group up to take the bell with 53 km to go through the chalets of Villars-sur-Ollon with 2 minutes 20 seconds. Only Eulálio and August had been dispatched to this point leaving nine strong riders remaining in the break.
3 km further up the mountain, Decathlon CMA CGM took control of the peloton and visibly changed the pace. It didn't take long before riders started to drop and the first of the GC top 10 to be distanced was Andrea Bagioli of Lidl-Trek. At the top with 44 km to go, there was a prize available, not only the KOM points, but also in remembrance for Gino Mäder who passed away during the Tour de Suisse in 2023. In a solomn gesture, the Martinez took the prize for Bahrain Victorious, the team Mäder rode for, and gave a kiss to the cross that hung around his neck. When the peloton went over the summit, there were only about 30 riders still in contact and they were within 1 minute 25 seconds of the break and closing.
Watching the descent, it was hard not to be envious of the riders. They swooshed down through the forest and emerged into wide open spaces with traditional wooden chalets surrounded by lush green meadows and views that live in the memory for a lifetime. Down into the valley and through Aigle, the gap was up to 1 minute 45 seconds and some members of the break wanted a head start before the final 9 km uphill to Villars-sur-Ollon. Lemmen went on the attack and was followed first by Martinez then Quintana. They built 20 seconds in no time and left the rest as bait for the peloton to catch.
When the bunch reached the bottom of the climb, UAE-XRG took over the pace and went full. Decathlon CMA CGM contributed as well and in just a few hundred meters, the group was completely shredded. With around 8 km to go, Tadej Pogačar of UAE-XRG looked over his shoulder, saw only Richard Carapaz of EF-Education EasyPost, and he accelerated. Carapaz tried to go with the race leader but it was a fool's errand. He was on Pogačar's rear wheel for about 100 meters and went into the red zone, an error many have made before him. Pogačar picked off rider after rider from the break away until it was just Quintana, Lemmen, then Martinez left.
Martinez sensed the pressure coming from behind and jumped clear of the rest with 7 km to go, flying his way up the mountain. From 7 km to 3.5 km to go, Pogačar only managed take the gap from 60 seconds to 32 seconds. 1,600 meters from the finish, Pogačar had Martinez in sight just 15 seconds up the road but Martinez was not giving up. The Frenchman pushed the pedals with his entire body but cruelly, Pogačar caught Martinez with just 850 meters to go and hit him with an acceleration that was impossible to match. Pogačar came into the finish straight and gave the roaring crowd high-fives before crossing the line for a third stage win to complete an utterly dominant performance. Martinez continued to fight to take second place at just 7 seconds while Lemmen held off the rest of the GC riders to finish third at 1 minute 33 seconds.
Cameras were focused on Pogačar so we did not see what happened to the rest of the GC riders until last few hundred meters. Jarno Widar of Lotto Intermarché had sprinted away from Matthew Riccitello of Decathlon CMA CGM to take fourth on the stage at 1 minute 53 seconds. Riccitello came in 2 seconds later with Enric Mas of Movistar right beside him and Carapaz 5 seconds behind.
In the end, the top three in GC did not shift. Tadej Pogačar won the race overall by an unbelievable 6 minutes 32 seconds to Richard Carapaz and 6 minutes 53 seconds to Mathias Vacek. The gap between first and second place in this edition of the Tour de Suisse was the largest in nearly 70 years which is incredible, especially given that the race is three days shorter than it has historically been.