PREVIEW | Tour de Romandie 2024 Prologue - Magnus Sheffield and Juan Ayuso among main favourites for EXTREMELY technical and possibly rainy prologue
Cycling
The Tour de Romandie is scheduled from April 23rd to 28th. A staple in the World Tour calendar, this event offers numerous opportunities for riders to secure victories. It marks the first high-level stage race following the Ardennes classics. Let's preview the race ahead.
The race begins with a 2.2-kilometer prologue in the town on Payerne. This is going to be quite an interesting day, where big gaps will not happen, but a first leader will be found at the end of the day.
Prologue: Payerne - Payerne, 2.2 kilometers
However this may not be a specialist. This is not a prologue that actually fits the time-trialists, and no-one in specific except for good bike handlers. See this prologue features nothing short of 10 90-degree corners.
This means there is a corner on average every... 220 meters. Funnily enough, most of them are actually situated in the final two thirds of the course. It's an extremely corner-dense prologue where the differences should actually be made according to how fast the riders take the corners. High risks will be taken by some, with a high reward however.
The Weather
Map Tour de Romandie 2024 Prologue
Cold temperatures and some moderate northeastern wind, but that shouldn't affect the day. What may however is the rain as it begins to fall in the early afternoon. How strong it will is a question, it should be light and may come in showers. However, it is possible that a few early riders may avoid wet roads and if this does happen, certainly they can benefit in such a technical course.
The Favourites
This is a course that will be far from hard to predict. Luck with the weather can be crucial on the day, but even more than that are the risks the riders will be willing to take. Being a TT expert won't matter too much honestly, because there will be no such thing as a constant effort in this effort. Tons of accelerations, anaerobic efforts... Sprinters and those who are excellent bike handlers have a very real chance of dethroning the most notable specialists in the discipline.
In the more classic side of those who are good in the time-trials we've got riders such as Magnus Sheffield, Juan Ayuso, Ethan Hayter, Rémi Cavagna, Brandon McNulty, Benjamin Thomas, Kasper Asgreen, Josef Cerny, Mattia Cattaneo, Luke Plapp, Bruno Armirail and Thibault Guernalec.
It is the first day in the season of Thibau Nys but in such a technical and explosive course he could surprise I don't doubt. Alongside other riders such as Maikel Zijlaard, Ivo Oliveira, Michael Hepburn, Rune Herregodts, Simone Consonni Tim van Dijke, Alex Aranburu, Johan Price-Pejterse, Jan Tratnik and Jan Christen can also quite surprise here, despite being mostly rouleurs or even classics riders. Form will also matter on the day.
Prediction Tour de Romandie 2024 Prologue:
*** Magnus Sheffield, Alex Aranburu
** Juan Ayuso, Maikel Zijlaard
* Ethan Hayter, Rémi Cavagna, Brandon McNulty, Josef Cerny, Mattia Cattaneo, Luke Plapp, Thibau Nys, Ivo Oliveira, Tim van Dijke, Johan Price-Pejtersen, Jan Tratnik
** Juan Ayuso, Maikel Zijlaard
* Ethan Hayter, Rémi Cavagna, Brandon McNulty, Josef Cerny, Mattia Cattaneo, Luke Plapp, Thibau Nys, Ivo Oliveira, Tim van Dijke, Johan Price-Pejtersen, Jan Tratnik
Pick: Alex Aranburu
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- yeah... you're right...PogiSloFans04-11-2026
- Podcast sounds great. Two so called experts stating the f*cking obvious.wrsty04-11-2026
- A mindset that reminds me of Tim Declerq. I loved watching that guy just pound away the kilometers, hours at the front, holding an entire breakaway in check on his own. Bjerg seems like a similar guy. Curling, the team sport.RidesHills04-11-2026
- He will be lol, but he can still win on the climbs hahaawp04-11-2026
- I would love to have his inconsistency. How many wins this year? 2 TdF stages, a WC, a Euro championship, San Sebastian, multiple wins early year. Monument podiums. I'd take it. I don't think he has a chance in the TdF, but he is still amazing.mij04-11-2026
- He's not going to win the TdF. Maybe if they make every single stage a TT he could win. But I still believe Tadej would just sharpen his TT skills and win.mij04-11-2026
- You beat me to it. Should he make a full recovery (likely) and go light early in the year. One, two, three. Don't ask me, I don't give a damn. Should he be on a Feel-Like-He's-Fixin'-to-Die High.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- The deciding factor may be the (TBD) number of (any type of) kilometers without Pogacar.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- Unexplained chronic fatigue is an all too common bitch. The hard to find definitive answer may lie buried in gut mechanisms. A mystery of the deep.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- It's weird to say Evenepoel would be making a "serious mistake by adding the 2027 Giro d'Italia to his calendar, warning that such a decision could even be interpreted as a lack of confidence in his ability to win the Tour de France." It may well be a mistake but with so many commentators (of all sorts) continuously claiming almost everything Remco does as being a mistake, almost nobody should care what the pundits and the disparagers should say. His team may not want him to do the Giro, and that matters. But it's possibly or probably up to Remco to decide and it may not have to be decided on until a month or so ahead of the race. Yes , Remco is inconsistent much like the majority of the best riders but he's enjoying a period of not having been recently injured (or sick). Whatever he does he need not be concerned with critics who will second guess any perceived failure no matter what. I suspect he will have enough other races on his schedule so he won't be considering it. But the worst reason to not race it is because of what some will say - humorous that be.Yepperoni04-11-2026
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Découvrez la cartes du parcours du #TDR2024, dévoilée ce matin à Vernier (GE). Concentré et nerveux comme un "espresso", ce Tour de Romandie!
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