The Deutschland Tour will be tougher than ever. If you want to win it, you need versatility - and outstanding climbing skills. Because the Schauinsland near Freiburg is on the programme as a mountain finish for the first time. Sporting Director Fabian Wegmann explains the special features of the stages and which riders have a chance and when. The grand finale will take place on stage 4 in Stuttgart on Sunday.
The elevation profile of the 4th stage
Facts about the 4th stage of the Deutschland Tour
- Route length: 186.6 kilometres
- Altitude metres: 3100
- Neutral start: 12:15 pm
- Sharp start: 12:25 pm
- Arrival at the finish: ~16:34-16:58
- TV broadcast: ZDF from 15:50
- Everything about the prologue
- Everything about stage 1
- Everything about the 2nd stage
- Everything about the 3rd stage
- Information on jerseys and the history of the Deutschland Tour
- The starting list with shirt numbers
Fabian Wegmann's assessment
Now it's all about the overall victory. "Of course, we could have made the route from Schiltach through the northern Black Forest to Stuttgart even tougher," says Fabian Wegmann: "But we didn't. After the tough day before, it doesn't have to be. We want to have a nice finale."
Nevertheless, the final stage demands everything from the Deutschland Tour pros - 3100 metres of elevation gain over 188 mountainous kilometres is more than enough: "It only flattens out towards Stuttgart. But the final lap after the first finish is ridden three times - and is a real tough one: it includes the Herdweg climb, which is up to 16 per cent steep and was also part of the road cycling world championship route in 2007. I'm assuming that there will be a real fight," hopes Wegmann.
"If there weren't too big gaps at Schauinsland, we'll be racing for seconds again in Stuttgart." The tough final stage could therefore change the overall classification once again.
Germany Tour 2022 extended by one day
The Deutschland Tour was reintroduced in 2018 after a ten-year break. The race is part of the UCI Pro Series. This is the second league of international cycling after the UCI World Tour. A total of 20 teams are competing, 14 of which are from the World Tour. In addition, there are two Pro (second league of cycling), three Continental teams and one German national team. The Deutschland Tour is organised by the ASO, which also organises the Tour de France organised. In 2022, the organisation extended the race from four to five days.
The Deutschland Tour has taken place a total of 35 times under different names since it was first organised in 1911. There have been 34 different overall winners. Only Jens Voigt was able to win the tour twice in 2006 and 2007.
