"I doubted whether I would ever make it back to the highest level" - Stefan Küng emotional after Tudor's double in Poland
CyclingMonday, 10 August 2026 at 03:00
The final time trial of the 2026 Tour de Pologne became Tudor Pro Cycling's playground. Not only has Stefan Küng recorded the best time of the day, but their general classification hope Mauro Brenner also prevailed among his rivals to secure the overall title.
Brenner placed himself in a perfect position to strike in Sunday's time trial after a consistent three-day block in the decisive stages saw him capture a spot just outside the provisional podium; but only 11 seconds from leader Cristian Scaroni. And since neither of the three riders in front of him is a prolific time trialist, the odds ahead of final stage were rather promising.
"Finishing the Tour de Pologne in yellow and winning the race makes me incredibly happy," Brenner opens his account with a broad smile. "It will take a few days for me to fully realise what we’ve achieved."
His race was disrupted by a crash on fourth stage, but Brenner put himself together to still finish third that day. "After the crash, I wasn’t sure how things would go, but I never gave up. The following day, I was able to show that I was one of the strongest climbers, and that’s when I really started to believe that a podium in the GC could be possible."
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But it's taken a re-affirmation that was his second place on stage 5 to truly begin to believe that a top result was possible. "After yesterdays stage I started to really believe in a win, when I found myself in a very good position ahead of the time trial."
Küng is back
Whereas for Brenner, this is the biggest victory of his career - and first at WorldTour level - his more experienced teammate Stefan Küng is not unfamiliar to the winning feeling. And yet, the two-time european time trial champion needed this reassurance maybe even more than the young German.
Marco Brenner at the 2026 Tour Down Under
After all, amidst injuries and illness Küng has not raised his hands in over a year - since his last triumph at Chrono des Nations 2024. Although Küng at his best would dominate the time trial with a much greater margin, this result will hopefully be a spring board to a strong final third of the season.
"This is such a special victory. I was really emotional when I realised I was going to win. The last international race I started [Omloop Nieuwsblad in February, ed.] ended with a crash and a broken femur, and during some of the difficult moments in my recovery, I honestly doubted whether I would ever make it back to the highest level," the Swissman confides.
"To come back from really being at the bottom and win again is unbelievable. A huge thank you to the Team, and everybody, who supported me so much throughout this journey, and of course to my family for always having my back. I’m incredibly grateful to be back at this level, and to win the GC with Marco makes it a perfect day for the Team."
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- Great to see Kung make a recovery. Seems like a decent dude.mij10-08-2026
- I agree with much of what you said, except the shot against Lotte. She has won 2 monuments, a GT stage, on the track, one day races and national championships. Pretty solid results. I love Demi as a rider. I can't say how I feel about her as a person as I've never met her. I feel bad for her sometimes - she is attractive, she wins, and she is fierce. That lady gives it her all on a bike and shows her emotions when it doesn't go well. She sometimes could be a more gracious loser, but I think that is the competitiveness in her. I mostly love watching her race and how hard she works. She is awesome.mij10-08-2026
- bummer for Marlenmij10-08-2026
- prior day aside, she was the strongest in the race. I think the best rider won.mij10-08-2026
- Are you going to be his shadow at the Vuelta? Hand holding and stalking him?frieders310-08-2026
- I’m glad Demi won this final with conviction and panache. Leaves no doubts after all the talk from yesterday’s stage.Pedalmasher09-08-2026
- he was 1 min behind vingegaard last year and even dropped jonas many times that year. This year hes been sick so not sure what you watch, almeida also said hes happy to ride as domestique next years. Every other teams he would be the captain but uae so stacked.miguel09-08-2026
- yeah but UAE have developed pogacar so creds to uae hes the best rider in the history now and when uae also the best team now its impossible to beat emmiguel09-08-2026
- It seems to me that Almeida is not happy in Team UAE. He’s not had luck with staying healthy and then he’s also relegated down the priority list within the team. I don’t see him renewing his contract whenever it’s up. From UAE’s perspective, he’s not performed up to his potential in a long time.
PogiFan2Day09-08-2026 - Her « own » team? Those were the people betting on and preferring Lotte who frankly, hasn’t really been up to scratch since Demi gave her the no. 1 spot.Mistermaumau09-08-2026
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