Adam Yates, representing UAE Team Emirates, strengthened his grip on the Tour de Suisse by seizing victory on the summit finish at Carì during stage 5. Yates was well-supported by his teammate João Almeida, who secured second place just five seconds behind.
Yates’ triumph was set up by a masterful display of pace-setting from Almeida. The Briton’s attack with 1.7 kilometres to go left Egan Bernal and Enric Mas unable to match his speed. Bernal, who crossed the line in third place, finished 15 seconds behind, while Mas and Matthew Riccitello rounded out the top five.
Earlier in the day, Ineos controlled much of the race until UAE Team Emirates took over on the final climb. Isaac del Toro initiated the process of thinning out the front group, which was then continued by Almeida with 6.5km remaining. This effort saw riders like Mattias Skjelmose drop off, leaving only ten contenders with 5km to go.
As Almeida increased the tempo, only Mas, Bernal, and Riccitello remained with the UAE duo with 3km left. Yates’ decisive move came shortly thereafter, with Bernal and Mas struggling to keep up. Although Mas managed to stay close for a while, he eventually succumbed to Yates’ pace 800m from the finish line. In the final metres, Almeida displayed his strength by overtaking both Bernal and Mas to claim second place.
Almeida, now 35 seconds behind Yates in the overall standings, moves to second, while Bernal climbs to third at 1:11.
Oscar Onley delivered a solid performance, finishing sixth. Onley credited his team’s efforts, stating, “The boys fought hard today to get back and support me after a hard first hour of racing. I was put in a good position and from there it was just down to the legs. I gave it everything and looking for more opportunities in the coming days.”
The day also marked a significant achievement for 22-year-old Matthew Riccitello, who finished fourth and now leads the best young rider classification. Reflecting on his performance, Riccitello said, “I’m super happy with how today went – I knew I had good legs coming into the race and every race I do, I am always pretty ambitious and eager to get a result. I wouldn’t say I am super surprised, just pretty happy that it worked out today.”
Riccitello’s attack on the 10.2-kilometre climb to Carì saw him riding alongside Yates and Bernal in the leading group. He finished 18 seconds behind Yates, narrowly missing out on third due to Bernal’s late surge. Riccitello, now fifth in the general classification, remarked, “It suited me a bit more than the shallow, faster-finishing climb yesterday, and also the stage being pretty hard from the start helped me a bit. I do a bit better when everyone has some fatigue in the legs.”
Looking ahead, Riccitello remains optimistic: “We have lots more climbing to come. I just want to keep going the way I have been going and it will be a good race.”
2024 Tour de Suisse Stage 5 result
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