Tour de Romandie 2023 – Prologue

A simple prologue

Route

Three turns. On small roads but does not matter to much as they are going 1 by 1. They are following the railways south before following a river back up north. Simple.

Weather

Rainy day in Switzerland. The later your start, the higher the chance of dry roads. I would argue the wind condition also turns in the favor of a late start but the wind is not very strong.

Red section is when they race (14:50 – 17:30).

Contenders

Foss (start time: 17:21) – defending WC. He is not very happy at JV, something I do not understand. Nonetheless, I think he excels at longer time trials. Despite it not being very technical tomorrow, I think he would have liked a harder course despite his size. He is still a serious podium contender. I think the long TT suits him more.

Sobrero – (start time: 16:50) – glad to see him being more consistent this season. He was good in Basque Country, showing he is not just a time trial rider. I think he is good on both longer and shorter time trials. I also think he has a better shot at stage 3 than tomorrow. He should still start as one of the favorites.

Hayter – (start time: 17:13) – it is a specialty for him this. Don’t overthink 21st in Down Under, it was was more or less a cloudburst that day. A broken collarbone set him back, he should be nearing his best. Very few can challenge him tomorrow.

Cavagna – (start time: 17:20) – it could be Cavagna who is flying this spring. A very simple course that is completely flat is fantastic for him. He is yet to win a prologue but he will get close tomorrow.

Cort – (start time: 17:17) – I expect him to challenge for a top-5 spot even though he rarely does well on shorter time trials.

Vernon – (start time: 16:58) – track rider. I expect a big result from him. His spring (Belgium classics) was a bit poor but he was ill. A month later, he should be back to his near best.

Price-Pejtersen – (start time: 17:14) – he does one thing very well and that is time trialing on a flat course. The step up to Bahrain has not been easy for him, but he got some top-10s against the clock last year. He also has a brief track record, something that is beneficial tomorrow.

Vauquelin – (start time: 17:07) – let’s see how much time he can take on some of the other favorites. I think the route is a bit too flat and too short for his liking. A top-10.

S. Yates – (start time: 17:12) – well, you can never tell. Had illness after Basque Country where he was a bit below his best. A top-10 is still likely, he really has improved against the clock.

Bjerg – (start time: 17:22) – I really like seeing him develop into a strong all-round rider. I am uncertain how much he has left in the tank after a long spring but he is not a triple U23-WC for nothing. He is very good when it comes to time trialling.

Stars

⭐⭐⭐⭐ Hayter
⭐⭐⭐ Cavagna, Vernon
⭐⭐ Sobrero, Foss, Price-Pejtersen
⭐ Bjerg, S. Yates, Vauquelin, Bjerg

Who will win?

I win for Ethan Hayter.