No favorite tried their luck on this climb. The descent allowed a small group to break away from the peloton of around thirty elements. Eleven riders showed up at the finish to compete for victory. Tobias Foss was the fastest in the sprint. The Norwegian, 26, won the 5th victory of his career, the first since his world time trial title in September 2022 and the first under the colors of INEOS Grenadiers, which he joined this year.
Foss beat Australian Chris Harper (Jayco AlUla) and Colombian Esteban Chaves (EF Education-EasyPost). Australian Ben O'Connor (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) took fourth place. The Spaniard Juan Pedro Lopez (Lidl-Trek) completed the top-5 at 3 seconds, just ahead of the Briton Geraint Thomas (INEOS Grenadiers).
The 2nd stage will connect Salorno, in Italy, to Stans, in Austria on Tuesday. Two climbs are on the program, including the Gnadenwald (2nd category) 15 km from the finish.
The Tour of the Alps, formerly the Tour of Trentino, is contested between Italy and Austria. The 47th edition will end on Friday in Levico Terme, in Trentino-Alto Adige. The British Tao Geoghegan Hart, absent this year, won the 2023 edition.
