Ullrich grabs gold jersey in Tour de Suisse
Germany's Jan Ullrich has moved into the overall lead in the Tour de Suisse after a 30-kilomtre time trial around the town of Sierre, in canton Valais.
The German finished the stage in third place, behind Latvia’s Raivis Belohvosciks and the Italian, Dario Frigo. It was enough to snatch the leader’s gold jersey from France’s Pascal Hervé, who finished lower down in the field.
It is the fifth time in as many days that a different rider has donned the leader’s jersey.
Ullrich displayed the kind of form that took him to the 1997 Tour de France title. He now has a commanding lead of one minute and seven seconds over the second-placed rider, Switzerland’s Oscar Camenzind.
A confident performer in the mountains, Ullrich will be looking to consolidate his lead in Sunday’s 103-kilometre stage, starting and ending in the Valais town of Ulrichen. It includes testing climbs over three of Switzerland’s most famous passes, the Nufenen, Gotthard and Furka.
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