The fallout from fiancée Urska Zigart’s crash and his focus on the Tour de France dictated Tadej Pogacar’s approach – but it was his trusted lieutenant who delivered for UAE Emirates-XRG on stage three of the Tour de Suisse.
It wasn’t the world champion but Jhonatan Narváez who claimed the win. The Ecuadorian launched a solo attack with 100km to go, alongside Belgian Xandro Meurisse (Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling), and held off the chasing peloton to sprint to victory in Bad Ragaz.
A three-time Giro d’Italia stage winner, Narváez proved his impeccable timing once more. Pogacar, meanwhile, took a back seat: after his fiancée’s crash and his stunning 70km solo on stage one, the 27-year-old sat in amid heavy rain showers and finished 12th.
His overall lead remained intact – still 2:50 clear of Tokyo Olympic champion Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost). Pogacar is using the Tour de Suisse as fine-tuning after his Tour de Romandie win in early May, with the Tour de France – starting July 4 in Barcelona – as his main target, where a fifth yellow jersey beckons.
But first, the race throws down one last challenge: Saturday’s 23.7km individual time trial, then Sunday’s finale – 4,500m of climbing with three ascents of the Col de la Croix – will be the ultimate test.
