The Critérium du Dauphiné may have attracted some of the big names this year, like Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) and Primož Roglič (Bora-Hansgrohe) but that doesn't mean the Tour de Suisse is foregoing its role as an important hit out before the Tour de France.
For some, those final preparations before attention turns to the Grand Tour are the all-important factor but for others who aren't lining up in Florence – or are doing it in support of another – getting the best result they can over the eight days in Switzerland is the key aim.
Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) took an emotional overall victory last year, with the racing coming second to the human tragedy given Gino Mäder crashed on stage 5 and died.
Skjelmose again lines up to try and defend his title at the race – which begins with a 4.8km time trial in Vaduz on Sunday, June 9 and covers 950km with almost 19,000 metres in altitude gain. There, however, are plenty of rivals, including two more former winners.
Here at Cyclingnews, we've run a rule over the preliminary start list – so lineup changes are still a possibility – to pick out some of the riders who could be fighting for the top spots as the race unfolds.
Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek)
Returning as defending champion after winning an emotional 2023 edition of the Tour de Suisse, the Danish rider won't be using the race as a tune-up for the Tour de France, with the eight-stage tour instead marking his return to racing as he builds toward the Olympic Games and the Vuelta a España.
The 23-year-old hasn't pinned on a number since Liège-Bastogne-Liège but his results in the early part of the season deliver promise that Skjelmose could deliver a solid result at the race he won last year. However, there will be some serious headwinds to overcome, given the rivals he'll be lining up against.
Still, with a third at Itzulia Basque Country in April, where he was leading the race into the final stage, Skjelmose again confirmed his promise and made clear that last year's Tour de Suisse win was a sign of things to come. The Lidl-Trek rider also came fourth at Paris-Nice, winning a stage along the way.
João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates)
It will be the first Tour de Suisse for João Almeida before he also heads toward a Tour de France debut. The 25-year-old will, of course, be riding in support of Tadej Pogačar in the Grand Tour, so Switzerland offers the rider a chance to carve out his own results.
Almeida was regularly among the best in the longer stage races last year, stepping up onto the overall podium at Tirreno-Adriatico, Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de Pologne.
This year is yet to deliver the same results, with Almeida in a support role at both his stage races so far this year. At the Volta a Catalunya he came ninth while Pogačar claimed victory, while he took 11th at Paris-Nice as Brandon McNulty stepped onto the podium for the team.
The Tour de Suisse, however, could offer a chance for Almeida, though given Finn Fisher-Black and the rising start of Isaac Del Toro are also in the team he definitely isn't the only option for a strong overall result.
Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost)
Richard Carapaz hasn't lined up at the Tour de Suisse since he won it in 2021, but he'll be using it as preparation for the Tour de France and hoping it delivers the same result, with the title in Switzerland then followed by a spot on the overall podium in Paris.
There's no chance of a complete repeat, though, as the Olympic Games road race winner in Tokyo has missed selection for the team this time around.
That may add even more fire for the upcoming battles, with the Ecuadorian road champion's strong season start at the National Championships and Tour Colombia, where he came second overall, not then initially carrying through to Europe. There was a pickup at the Tour de Romandie, where Carapaz finished seventh overall and also picked up a stage victory. It's perhaps the sign of a building momentum which could make him a real threat in Switzerland.
Enric Mas (Movistar)
For Enric Mas, the Tour de Suisse is a lead-in race for a GC charge at the Tour de France, where his best overall result so far was fifth overall in 2020. Mas hasn't raced Suisse since 2019, when he came ninth following on from a fourth in 2018, having used the Critérium du Dauphiné as his lead-in to the French Grand Tour during the intervening years.
The change this year, after a couple of Tour de France appearances that haven't run to plan, could provide the Spanish rider to work his way up the results table, both at the event and from his GC run so far this year.
Mas has raced just three events this year, honing in on Tirreno-Adriatico where he came 12th overall, before a fifth at Volta Ciclista a Catalunya and sixth at the Tour de Romandie. The 29-year-old is the picture of consistency, with seven top-six finishes among the nine Grand Tours he has finished, so it's a good bet that we will also see him near the top of the results table at the Tour de Suisse, too.
Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers)
The Ineos Grenadiers rider has won the Tour de Suisse before, back in 2019 when he then went on to win the Tour de France. Much has changed through the intervening seasons but there have been promising signs in the early months of 2024 that the Colombian is on an upward trajectory.
Last year, his first full season since his horrible training crash at the start of 2022, he was on the build and managed to secure a couple of top 10s overall. This year the podium places are beginning to come through, with third overall at both O Gran Camiño and Volta a Catalunya. Perhaps the Tour de Suisse is a chance for another.
Tom Pidcock will also present another card for the team to play, with the Amstel Gold Race winner lining up in Vaduz to take on the Swiss race from June 9-16 before staying on in the nation for the UCI MTB World Cup round in Crans Montana on June 23 and then heading to off to start the Tour de France in Florence on June 29.
Lenny Martinez (Groupama-FDJ)
Groupama-FDJ have been given plenty of reason to celebrate their developing talent so far this season, with 21-year-old Laurence Pithie opening their win tally for the year at the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race and Lenny Martinez being the team's most prolific contributor, having already collected five wins this season.
The 20-year-old may be showing the signs of potential that mark him one of the most prized creatures in cycling – a home nation contender for a top overall result at the Tour de France. However, that is a thought best saved for the years ahead.
For Martinez, the Tour de Suisse this year is one of the building blocks toward a return appearance at the Vuelta a España, and while he may not be a top favourite for the eight-stage race his shows of increasing strength also make him a rider that is hard to ignore.
The rider, who was born in Cannes, started the season with a win at Classic Var and then a second overall at O Gran Camiño, there were then four more one-day race victories along the way and top 10 results at both Volta a Catalunya and Tour de Romandie.
Cian Uijtdebroeks (Visma-Lease a Bike)
The Giro d'Italia had been a main focus of the season for Cian Uijtdebroeks but while he ended the 10th stage in a strong fifth overall, he didn't start stage 11 as the 21-year-old was unwell with a fever. Walking away when the goal of a top-10 finish overall looked within reach was a tough outcome for the rider at their first Italian Grand Tour but the Tour de Suisse could provide some consolation.
Uijtdebroeks, then racing with Bora-Hansgrohe, came seventh at the race last year and has rarely fallen out of the top 10 in any stage race he has completed since the start of last season.
This season, his results include fifth at O Gran Camiño and seventh at Tirreno-Adriatico. It seems just a matter of time until Uijtdebroeks hits his first overall podium at a WorldTour race, and the Tour de Suisse presents an opportunity to take another step in that direction.
