Home Victory at Tour of Austria After a Decade

Ten years after Lukas Pöstlberger’s win, UAE Team Emirates’ Felix Großschartner has delivered the next red-white-red stage victory at the Tour of Austria. “This is a dream come true and takes a lot of pressure off my shoulders,” celebrated the Upper Austrian rider on home soil. Großschartner, now the overall leader and points jersey holder, triumphed ahead of his teammate Rafal Majka. Promising talent Marco Schrettl from Tyrol impressed, while Riccardo Zoidl and Patrick Konrad faced technical setbacks.

Stage 1 Recap – Steyr to Porscheberg

The 74th edition of the Tour of Austria opened with Stage 1: 167.8 km and 2,433 meters of elevation gain. Starting in the baroque town of Steyr, a hub of Austrian industrial heritage, the route passed through the scenic Traunviertel region—covering Pyhrn-Priel, Bad Hall, Steyr, and the National Park region. Thousands of spectators lined Steyr’s main square to cheer on the 20 participating teams.

After a high-paced start and several breakaway attempts, a lead group of eleven riders formed just before the first KOM at Roßleiten (km 70). Austrian Continental teams made a strong showing with five local riders: Emanuel Zangerle and Kilian Feuerstein (Team Vorarlberg), David Paumann and Jakob Purtscheller (Tirol KTM Cycling), and Matthias Gusner (WSA KTM Graz), all gaining over two minutes on the peloton.

UAE Emirates Steals the Show on Porscheberg

Before the second KOM at Polsterer Kogel,WorldTour teamsUAE and Jayco pushed the pace, gradually closing the gap. At the first pass through the finish in Steyr—prior to the decisive Porscheberg loop—the gap to the lead quartet had narrowed to mere seconds.

From there, attacks surged. UAE Emirates controlled the race flawlessly, reducing the front group to fewer than 20 riders before the brutally steep Porscheberg (11.2% gradient).

A flurry of attacks followed, until UAE’s power trio—Großschartner, Majka, and EF Education-EasyPost’s Archie Ryan—broke away. At the 1 km mark, Großschartner and Majka executed a textbook tactical move. Majka held the chase at bay while Großschartner powered toward the finish at nearly 70 km/h, crossing solo five seconds ahead of his teammate.

“My goal was to win today—I knew every kilometer of this course,” said Großschartner. “To have it all come together like this is a dream. My main objective was this stage win, and achieving it takes a huge weight off my shoulders.”

Crashes, Comebacks, and a MotoGP Debut

The sprint for fourth place saw Filippo Baroncini edge out UAE teammate Isaac del Toro, 16 seconds behind the winner. Lidl-Trek’s Lennard Kämna finished sixth. Patrick Konrad, who had been in the lead on Porscheberg, suffered a mechanical issue and lost valuable time. Riccardo Zoidl (Hrinkow Advarics) also faced technical problems in the final 20 kmbut still managed to place a respectable 28th.

A highlight came from Marco Schrettl (Tirol KTM Cycling), who showcased his rising potential with a remarkable 12th-place finish. Meanwhile, three-time MotoGP star Aleix Espargaró experienced a tough cycling debut, finishing 84th—13 minutes behind—after a crash. “I was so nervous. That was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. I crashed, but luckily I’m okay,” said the Spaniard.

General Classification After Stage 1

Felix Großschartnerleads the overall standings and the Austrian Lotteries Points Classification, while also being the best Austrian in the Gebrüder Weiss competition. Rafal Majka sits 9 seconds behind in second, followed by Archie Ryan at 12 seconds back. Nicolya Vinokurov (Astana) leads the Mountains Classification presented by Mautner Markhof. Isaac del Toro is the top U23 rider (by DANKÜCHEN), and Emanuel Zangerle (Team Vorarlberg) will wear the Active Rider jersey on Stage 2.

Stage 2 Preview – Into Snow Space Salzburg

While St. Johann hosts a stage finish for the 16th time, Bischofshofen will make its Tour of Austria debut as Stage 2 gets underway tomorrow at 12:15 CET. The 142.1 km stage features 1,676 meters of climbing. After a KOM in St. Martin im Tennengebirge (km 20) and an early sprint in Annaberg/Lungötz, the route winds through Abtenau and back to Bischofshofen. Another sprint occurs at Wagrain just before the final run-in throughAltenmarkt and Eben.

The finish features a steep final climb: 1.9 km at 6.3% into Alpendorf. Spectators can expect a thrilling finale with the finish expected around 15:30 CET.

Text Credits: Tour of Austria
Photo Credits: Tour of Austria
Video Credits: Κ19