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 some German-speaking riders in the role of helper at the 2025 Tour de France. And some of them will have to look after the best of the best. Nils Politt (UAE – XRG) is Tadej Pogacar's powerhorse. On flat and slightly hilly terrain, we'll often see the tall German at the front of the peloton. Maximilian schachmann (Soudal Quick-Step) has a similar role in the service of Remco Evenepoel, only that he will be used more often when the stage profile becomes a little more demanding. Florian Lipowitz (RB – Bora – hansgrohe) can be described as a valuable assistant to Primoz Roglic – however, the 24-year-old can also be trusted to go on stage hunts himself or even aim for the mountain jersey. The Austrian Gregor Muehlberger (Movistar) is an important man for Enric Mas. Stephen Bissegger (Decathlon Ag2r La Mondiale) from Switzerland will support 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 be on the sprints. Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain – Victorious) and Pascal Ackermann (Israel – Premier Tech), two German sprinters were nominated, who hold the captaincy role in their teams during mass finishes. Both professionals have something in common: They have yet to win a Tour stage. That's set to change at the 2025 Tour de France. However, the competition is often supported by other German-speaking riders. Jonas slip (Intermarché – Wanty) will try to position Biniam Girmay. The Swiss Sylvan Dillier (Alpecin – Deceuninck) works for Jasper Philipsen. And Niclas Märkl (Picnic PostNL) has two teammates, Tobias Lund Andresen and Pavel Bittner, who could win a stage in the sprint. The German-speaking team in Team Tudor is particularly strong. For its first Tour participation, the Swiss racing team is counting on the Austrian, among others. Mark Haller (Tudor), the Swiss Fabian Lienhard (Tudor) and the Germans Marius Mayrhofer (Tudor). Together, they pursue the goal of securing a stage victory with their sprinter, Alberto Dainese.
Fire at will: The stage hunt begins
The German-speaking riders' best chance of winning a stage at the 2025 Tour de France will likely be from a breakaway group, especially if the profile is undulating and challenging, so that the sprint teams won't have to chase them down. The newly crowned German champion George Zimmerman (Intermarché – Wanty) dreams of a Tour stage win and will be given freedom within his Belgian team. The same applies to the Swiss Marc Hirschi (Tudor), who already has a Tour stage victory under his belt, but would like to win again after years. His Swiss compatriot Mauro Schmid (Jayco AlUla) is capable of such a coup. This season, Schmid is stronger than ever – he can be reckoned with on hilly finishes and not-so-difficult mountain stages. We hope for the same at Emmanuel Buchman (Cofidis), except that the former Tour overall fourth will aim for a stage win in the high mountains. The strongest German-speaking climber this year is Felix Gall (Decathlon Ag2r La Mondiale). The Austrian could try to challenge for the podium in the overall standings. If that doesn't work out, he'll turn to stage hunting. He already won a stage two years ago—so why not again?
