Tobias Foss sets the tone for INEOS in Kurtinig/Cortina at the Tour of the Alps

You never forget the first time you raised your arms on the finishing line, even if you have a Time Trial World Championship and a Tour de l’Avenir in your list of achievements. For Tobias Foss, the Tour of the Alps and Kurtinig an der Weinstraße/Cortina sulla Strada del Vino will always be a happy memory.

On Monday, April 15th, the Team INEOS Grenadiers’ Norwegian won the opening stage of the Euroregional race, from Neumarkt/Egna to Kurtinig adW/Cortina sSdV, of 133,3 km), and did it in an unprecedented fashion for him: outsprinting a reduced group, the result of the severe selection on the tough Penon/Penone ascent – and descent.

“I knew to have a good sprint, not ad a bunch sprinter, but capable of holding my own in a reduced sprint among good climbers,” Foss told. “Today our goal was getting atop the last ascent with Geraint and myself in the leading group, and we have managed that. In the finale, Geraint told me to try to give it a go, but O’Connor was quick in bringing me back, and then I moved on Chaves’ wheel when he made his move. It came down to a sprint, and it turned out well.”

In Kurtinig/Cortina, Foss saw off Chris Harper (Jayco-Alula) and Esteban Chaves (EF Education-EasyPost), in a group that included some of the top favorites of this Tour of the Alps: Ben O’Connor (Decathlon-AG2R-La Mondiale) was fourth, Geraint Thomas (INEOS- Grenadiers) sixth, Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain Victorious) seventh and best youngster, Romain Bardet, (DSM-Firmenich PostNL) ninth after attacking on descent, and Wout Poels eleventh. Thirty-four seconds behind came another strong group, led home by a solid Filippo Ganna (INEOS Grenadiers).

Tobias Foss’ stage racing pedigree is well documented by his Tour of the Avenir title in 2019, becoming the first Norwegian to achieve such feat. Nevertheless, in his early pro years, the INEOS Grenadiers rider made the most of his opportunities in time trials, even wearing the World Champion’s rainbow jersey in the discipline.

“I was happy to win one of my first races with this jersey – said the Norwegian, who moved to INEOS from Jumbo Visma -. “Here I feel the confidence to try and progress as a stage racer, and I am finding all the needed support. I know that many emerging riders have found their breakthrough here, and I wouldn’t mind following that pattern, as well.”

The Norwegian also earned the opportunity to wear the first Melinda Green Jersey, adding to the big collection of INEOS Grenadiers in this race. The British team defends the title won by Tao Geoghegan Hart in 2023, and has claimed the GC five times in the last eight editions.

“Tomorrow (Salurn/Salorno-Stans, 190,7 km) should be a less severe stage, but there will still be climbs and elevation gain to be faced. Let’s hope to be in contention once again, and maybe there could be the terrain to give my sprinting legs another go.”

The winner was awarded by Südtirol/Alto Adige and Tirol-Südtirol-Alto Adige-Trentino Euroregion’s President Arno Kompatscher. “The Tour of the Alps is a successful cross-border project, that we as Euroregion care a lot about. Being here in Kurtinig/Cortina to applaud the winner, all the riders and the organizers, is for me a great pleasure, also on the behalf of our Province’s Sports Assessor Peter Brunner”, said Kompatscher.

Also Italian Cycling Federation President Cordiano Dagnoni was in attendance at the start: “The Tour of the Alps is an amazing race, beautiful and hard, in which youngsters often manage to show off, and is unique because of its trans-border nature. GS Alto Garda is a high-quality organizer, whose remarkable efforts for safety deserve credit.”