Jakob Fuglsang secured his first stage race podium of the season after racing against the clock to secure third place at Tour de Suisse.

It was Fuglsang’s fourth GC podium at the Swiss WorldTour race and his first with Israel – Premier Tech, wrapping up a strong week of racing and stellar teamwork.

Tour de Suisse 2022 – 85th Edition – 8th stage Vaduz – Vaduz 26 km – 19/06/2022 – Geraint Thomas (GBR – INEOS Grenadiers) – Jakob Fuglsang (DEN – Israel – Premier Tech) – Sergio Higuita (COL – Bora – Hansgrohe) – photo Vincent Kalut/PhotoNews/SprintCyclingAgency©2022

“In general, I’m satisfied with my day and, in the end, also with my Tour de Suisse. I tried on many stages, compared to many other guys. I was maybe one of the few ones who actually tried something. We were probably one of the strongest teams for animating the race and I think, as a team, we rode really well with what we had here. I gave everything I had.”

The closing time trial

Rolling down the ramp in third place, Fuglsang had to defend his podium place in tough conditions with temperatures reaching 39 degrees.

It had been a tough Tour de Suisse already, and “the heat during the time trial did not make it any easier,” Fuglsang explained.

The Dane pushed his Factor HANZŌ to the max and put in a strong first half with the provisional fourth-fastest time. At the finish, Fuglsang clocked off the ninth time, about a minute behind GC-winner Geraint Thomas.

Tour de Suisse 2022 – 85th Edition – 8th stage Vaduz – Vaduz 26 km – 19/06/2022 – Jakob Fuglsang (DEN – Israel – Premier Tech) – Geraint Thomas (GBR – INEOS Grenadiers) – photo Vincent Kalut/PhotoNews/SprintCyclingAgency©2022

Fuglsang said: “Looking back, maybe it would have been smart to give Thomas the jersey, so his team would have had to control the race. However, it is always easy to be clever afterward. I have no regrets. I knew it would be difficult to beat Thomas in this TT.”

Another chance next year

“I have given everything this week”, Fuglsang repeated. “It was not enough in the end. I didn’t take the jersey with me home, so I will have to come back another year to go for the win again.”