Cycling: 176 riders start the 105th Tour de France on Saturday. Among them we find eleven Germans, four Swiss and three Austrians. We introduce you to the 18 German-speaking professionals in more detail and speculate what roles they will play in the Tour of France.
The German drivers are no longer so dominant
In terms of stage victories, Germany is the most successful nation in modern times. In the last five years, 26 wins have been achieved, which corresponds to an average of 5,2 stage wins per Tour de France. This season, however, the omens are less good. Although the top sprinters Marcel Kittel and André Greipel still have chances of success, the competition has caught up. Even in the time trial, Tony Martin is no longer the measure of all things. John Degenkolb is riding his sixth Tour de France, but so far has never been able to celebrate a day's success. Since the other nominated German drivers tend to have to help out, we could go away empty-handed for the first time since 2010.
| Driver | Country | Team | Task | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marcus Burghardt | Germany | Bora, hansgrohe | Helper for Peter Sagan & Rafal Majka |
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| André Greipel | Germany | Lotto Soudal | Sprinter | |
| Marcel Sieberg | Germany | Lotto Soudal | Approach by André Greipel | |
| Marcel Kittel | Germany | Katusha Alpecin | Sprinter | |
| Tony Martin | Germany | Katusha Alpecin | time rider, breakaway, Helper for Marcel Kittel & Ilnur Zakarin |
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| Nils Politt | Germany | Katusha Alpecin | Runaway, Helper for Marcel Kittel & Ilnur Zakarin |
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| Rick Zabel | Germany | Katusha Alpecin | Approach by Marcel Kittel | |
| Paul Martens | Germany | LottoNL Jumbo | Helpers of Primoz Roglic & Dylan Groenewegen |
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| Nickias Arndt | Germany | Sunweb | Sprinter, Helpers by Michael Matthews & Tom Dumoulin |
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| Simon Geschke | Germany | Sunweb | Runaway, Helpers by Michael Matthews & Tom Dumoulin |
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| John Degenkolb | Germany | Trek-Segafredo | Sprinter for hilly stages |
Swiss & Austrians: Especially strong on the flat
We're looking in vain for Swiss and Austrian captains at this year's Tour de France. Nevertheless, the four Swiss and three Austrians can start the Tour of France full of hope. Silvan Dillier, for example, was just as convincing at Paris-Roubaix as Gregor Mühlberger at the Critérium du Dauphiné. Stefan Küng is an important man for Richie Porte, especially on stages #3 and #9. If the wind blows diagonally into the peloton, Michael Schär, Lukas Pöstlberger and Michael Gogl will also actively support their captains. The experienced Mathias Frank can be described as a noble helper for Pierre Latour and Romain Bardet. If the teams made up of Swiss and Austrians send a man into the breakaway group on a flat stage or a hilly stage, the chances are not that bad that they will fight for the day's victory in the end.
| Driver | Country | Team | Task | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sylvan Dillier | Switzerland | AG2R La Mondiale | Runaway, Helpers by Romain Bardet |
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| Matthew Frank | Switzerland | AG2R La Mondiale | Helpers by Romain Bardet | |
| Stefan Kung | Switzerland | BMC | time trialist, Helpers by Richie Porte |
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| Michael Schar | Switzerland | BMC | Helpers by Richie Porte | |
| Gregor Muehlberger | Austria | Bora, hansgrohe | Runaway, Helpers by Peter Sagan & Rafal Majka |
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| Lukas Postlberger | Austria | Bora, hansgrohe | Runaway, Helpers by Peter Sagan & Rafal Majka |
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| Michael Gogl | Austria | Trek-Segafredo | Helper of John Degenkolb & Bauke Mollema |