Stage 8 | Sunday, 18 June | St. Gallen - Abtwill | 25.7 kilometres
The final stage of the Tour de Suisse 2023 remains close to Lake Constance and its route roughly describes a non-closed, anti-clockwise circuit. The first ten kilometres are largely flat to downhill. There is only a first serious climb shortly before the first split time at kilometre 10.7, with around 60 metres of elevation gain over 800 metres.
But it doesn't stop there, with a total of more than 400 metres of elevation gain. Almost half of this is completed between kilometres 17 and 20. In some places there are gradients of more than seven per cent. Shortly afterwards, the second split time is taken. The last three kilometres or so to the finish line are then downhill.
Sporting assessment of the 8th stage
At first glance, the course of the final time trial looks quite easy, but on closer inspection it is not. On the first, slightly downhill section, it is easy to lose seconds if the gear is not big enough or if you want to save some energy for the final. The last descent must also be ridden at maximum speed. On the climb before that, you can quickly lose your rhythm due to the not insignificant gradient.
A good half hour at full throttle will be required for the stage win. Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ) proved at the start that he can still beat the best. To repeat that would be a dream come true for the Swiss rider. And apart from the short climb, which Remco Evenepoel (Soudal - Quick Step), the Swiss rider should have an advantage on the downhill sections due to his greater weight. This also applies to Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma). There are still a few seconds to be gained - or lost - in the battle for the overall classification. There will definitely be changes in the top 10, perhaps even in the overall lead.
Schedule, TV coverage & live stream of stage 8 of the Tour de Suisse 2023
The first rider is due to start the final individual time trial at around 13:45, with the last one finishing at around 16:28 and thus at around 17:00. An average speed of 49 km/h is expected for the best riders, which means a good half hour of riding time.
The Tour de Suisse will not be shown on German television. In Switzerland, however, the German-language channel SRF 2 will broadcast the 8th stage live from 3pm. At this time, the paid live streams from GCN+, Discovery+ and thus also Eurosport will also be added to the programme.
Tour de Suisse - Stage 8: The most important information at a glance
- Individual time trial over 25.7 kilometres
- Start first rider: 13:45
- Finish of last rider: approx. 5 pm
- TV broadcast: in Switzerland on SRF 2 from 3pm
- Live stream: GCN+, Discovery+ and Eurosport from 3pm
