Cycling: The 112th Tour de France starts in Lille on Saturday. Several German-speaking riders will be participating again. We take a look at the ten Germans, five Swiss, and three Austrians. What challenges do they face, and who has the best chance of winning a stage?
Helper services for the best of the best
As in previous years, we will see several German-speaking riders in support roles at the 2025 Tour de France. And some of them will be looking after the very best. Nils Politt (UAE – XRG) is Tadej Pogacar's powerhouse. On the flat and slightly hilly terrain, we will very often see the tall German at the front of the peloton. Maximilian Schachmann (Soudal Quick-Step) has a similar task supporting Remco Evenepoel, except that he will likely be used more when the stage profile becomes more demanding. Florian Lipowitz (RB – Bora – hansgrohe) can be described as a key support rider for Primoz Roglic – however, the 24-year-old is also capable of going for stage wins himself or even aiming for the King of the Mountains jersey. The Austrian Gregor Mühlberger (Movistar) is an important rider for Enric Mas. Stefan Bissegger (Decathlon Ag2r La Mondiale) from Switzerland will be supporting the Austrian Felix Gall.
Still strongly represented in the sprint
The glory days of Erik Zabel, Marcel Kittel, and André Greipel may be over, but even today, the focus of German-speaking riders seems to remain on sprints. With Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain – Victorious) and Pascal Ackermann (Israel – Premier Tech), two German sprinters have been nominated, both of whom hold the captaincy for their teams in mass sprints. Both professionals have something in common: they have yet to win a Tour de France stage. They aim to change that at the 2025 Tour de France. However, their competition is often supported by other German-speaking riders. Jonas Rutsch (Intermarché – Wanty) will try to position Biniam Girmay. The Swiss rider Silvan Dillier (Alpecin – Deceuninck) will work hard for Jasper Philipsen. And Niclas Märkl (Picnic PostNL) has two teammates, Tobias Lund Andresen and Pavel Bittner, who could win a stage in a sprint. The German-speaking contingent in Team Tudor is particularly strong. Making their Tour de France debut, the Swiss team is fielding riders including Austrian Marco Haller , Swiss Fabian Lienhard , and German Marius Mayrhofer . Together, they aim to secure a stage win with their sprinter Alberto Dainese.
Fire at will: The stage hunt begins
German-speaking riders likely have the best chance of a stage win at the 2025 Tour de France from a breakaway. This is especially true if the profile is undulating and demanding, meaning the sprinters' teams won't have to do any chasing. Newly crowned German champion Georg Zimmermann (Intermarché – Wanty) dreams of a Tour stage victory and will be given the freedom to do so by his Belgian team. The same applies to Swiss rider Marc Hirschi (Tudor), who already has a Tour stage win under his belt but would love to win again after all these years. His fellow Swiss rider Mauro Schmid (Jayco AlUla) is also capable of such a feat. This season, Schmid is stronger than ever – he's a force to be reckoned with on hilly finishes and less grueling mountain stages. We expect the same from Emanuel Buchmann (Cofidis), except that the former fourth-place finisher in the Tour will be aiming for a stage win in the high mountains. The strongest German-speaking climber this year is once again Felix Gall (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale). The Austrian could attempt to challenge for a podium finish in the overall standings. If that doesn't work out, he'll go for stage wins. He already won a stage two years ago – so why not again?
