Gonzalez triumphs at Tour de Suisse

Tour de Suisse winner Aitor Gonzalez (right) first made an impression in the third stage Keystone

Spain’s Aitor Gonzalez has won the 69th Tour de Suisse, overtaking Michael Rogers of Australia on the final day of the nine-day tour.

In a nail-biting finish, the Euskaltel team rider held off the chasing group to take the final stage and ensure overall victory.

Switzerland’s most prestigious cycling race ended in Ulrichen in the southern canton of Valais with a mountainous 113-km final stage.

Rogers came in second overall, 22 seconds behind Gonzalez, while Germany’s Jan Ullrich was third in the final classification.

Gonzalez, who had been in fourth place overall at the start of the stage and 36 seconds behind Rogers, pulled away from the other riders on the Furka pass and came in 48 seconds ahead of his rival.

Spanish winner

Gonzalez is only the second Spaniard to win the race after José Manuel Fuente in 1973.

He has been racing with Euskaltel since the start of the year, after switching from the Italian team Fassa Bortolo.

Last year’s winner, Jan Ullrich, was unable to keep up with the best riders this year. The German was almost two minutes behing Gonzalez going up the Furka pass – the final climb.

Beat Zberg was the best placed Swiss, ending the final stage seventh and also coming seventh in the final classification.

swissinfo with agencies

Key facts

Tour de Suisse final classification:

1. Aitor Gonzalez (Spain/Euskaltel) 33:08:51″
2. Michael Rogers (Australia/Quick-STep) +22″
3. Jan Ullrich (Germany/T-Mobile) +1.36″