“I was looking at the power numbers and thinking it was insane” – German speed skater Lennart Jasch storms to breakthrough first cycling win with Tour of the Alps solo

Lennart Jasch could barely process what he had just done. On Stage 4 of the Tour of the Alps, the German development rider produced a stunning solo performance to take his first win in professional cycling, holding off the chasers after a long-range move in the mountains.

Speaking after the finish, the Lennart Jasch admitted the day had begun like any other, before quickly turning into something extraordinary. “It was just an incredible day. When I woke up this morning, I thought it would be just another normal day, but from the start the pace was super high. I felt really good though, and on the climb I was looking at the power numbers and thinking it was actually insane. But the feeling was incredible,” the Tudor Pro Cycling Team rider told Cycling Pro Net.

The decisive moment came on the climbs, when Jasch realised not only that he could follow, but that he might be the strongest rider in the move. “I decided to give it a try and just believed all the way to the finish that I could make it,” he said. “Quite soon I felt I was the strongest in the group, so I put everything I had into my attacks. It worked out and now I’m just super happy. I still can’t really believe what happened.”

That belief was not blind aggression. Jasch revealed that his early move was partly a test, designed to gauge the legs of those around him before committing fully. “Yes, a bit,” he explained when asked whether his first acceleration had been tactical. “I felt good, but going alone with 45 kilometres to go is really hard. I wanted to test everyone first. When they came back, I saw that I was the strongest and that gave me confidence.”

From that moment, the mindset shifted. “After that I knew I could win today. I just had to believe and put everything into it no matter what happened.”

Even with that confidence, the closing kilometres were far from straightforward. As the gap behind began to fall, Jasch admitted the doubts crept in. “Before the last corner I was really doubting, I was in so much pain. I was trying to stay positive and I could hear on the radio that they were getting closer and closer.”

That uncertainty lasted almost to the finish. “You start to wonder if they will catch you or not,” he said. “But then I reached the final corner and it was just 400 metres to go. I looked back, didn’t see anyone, and then I went all out to the line.”

The result marks a major step forward for Jasch, who only transitioned to cycling after a background in speed skating and is still competing at development level. On a stage shaped by relentless climbing and aggressive racing, he not only survived but dominated the decisive move.

For now, the scale of what he has achieved is still sinking in. But on a day that began as “just another normal day”, Jasch has announced himself in the mountains in the most emphatic way possible.