After the disappointment of losing sprinter Pascal Ackermann through illness during Thursday’s fourth stage, IPT bounced back at the Tour de Pologne on Friday, as British rider Jake Stewart recorded a season-best result of fifth in Katowice.
Stewart is normally there to pilot Ackermann to the final meters, even in the most hectic of finales, yet for the second day running he showed his versatility by taking on the leadership role.
“I’m definitely happy, it’s always nice to go for a result for myself,” says Stewart, whose previous best result of 2024 was eighth in May’s Circuit de Wallonie. “To be able to get into that position coming towards the finish line is good.”
With turns and road furniture a feature of the final three kilometers (he was nearly taken down in a crash going into a corner), Stewart needed a strong IPT team performance to get in the mix.
He adds: “It was a really fast day: the guys in the break were fast, so it was fast behind. The boys put me in a good position going into the last 10km. We knew that the corner at 2.6km to go was pretty crucial and we nailed it. Schwarzi [Michael Schwarzmann] and G [Guillaume Boivin] did a really good job positioning me – I was 10 wheels back behind the big guys.
“G then did a good pull which was crucial – that meant I kept the momentum instead of being caught behind the lead-out guys as they slowed approaching the finish.
“I found myself on [stage winner Tim] Merlier’s wheel and tried to kick with him and the other big names. It’s hard racing against those guys, but I did the best I could.”
Saturday’s stage features 3,186 meters of climbing, but the uphill finale to the Bukowina Resort looks suited to Stewart’s abilities should he make there in contention.
