Tour of the Sauerland: Team Vorarlberg Finishes on the Podium
Tour of the Sauerland: Team Vorarlberg on the Podium
The final stage of the Sauerland Tour covered 132 kilometers. And it was a tough one. The stage culminated with a climb up the Kahlen Asten. Along the way, the riders had to tackle, among other things, the infamous Hirschberger A slope with a gradient of up to 34%, dirt roads and even a stream crossing to navigate.
Team Vorarlberg was completely focused today on the long but not-too-steep final climb. During this phase, the yellow jerseys from Vorarlberg were seen in droves at the very front. “We went along with every attack and set the pace at times,” said Team Vorarlberg race director Paul Renger, expressing his satisfaction with his riders.
In a frantic finale, Luxembourg’s Arno Wallenborn broke away from the leading group and rode solo to the first non-German stage victory in the Sauerland. Behind him, the chasing pack began to split up more and more in the very last meters. It was left to Giacomo Ballabio to provide the highlight of the tour for Team Vorarlberg. The Italian won the sprint of a twelve-man group, finishing ten seconds behind Wallenborn and six behind the Dane Noah Møller Andersen. Third.
In the overall standings, Ballabio moved up two more spots and finished the Sauerland Tour in a solid 15th place. Nothing changed at the very front. Thanks to the two Germans, Paul Fietzke and Max Bock, there was a one-two finish for the young riders of the world-class Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe team.
“The first three days didn’t go quite as we’d hoped. But today we showed what we’re capable of,” Paul Renger concluded at the end, offering an overall positive assessment of the tour, which was “excellently organized, featured an attractive route, and has real potential.” Numerous climbs and spectacular descents characterized the route through the “Land of 1,000 Mountains.”
The spotlight was on Germany’s top young riders and the development squads of top teams such as Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe, Lidl Trek, Lotto Kern, and Picnic PostNL. They all impressively demonstrated why their world-class teams want to count on them in major races in the future.
The next race for Team Vorarlberg is the Giro d’Abruzzo, which will take place from September 15 to 18.
Result: www.procyclingstats.com/race/sauerlandrundfahrt/2026/stage-4
Photos: During the Sauerland Tour, Mario Stiehl accompanied the pros from Team Vorarlberg on their journey through South Westphalia, impressively capturing the fascination of cycling.
Press Service Team Vorarlberg
www.team-vorarlberg.at
office@proevent-cycling.at
Roster: Giacomo Ballabio, Pirmin Benz, Philipp Hofbauer, Tobias Nolde, Dominik Röber, Emanuel Zangerle, Colin Stüssi
