PREVIEW | Tour of Denmark 2025 stage 1 - Mads Pedersen and Jasper Philipsen main favourites for first victory
Cycling
From the 12th to the 16th of August the peloton will be in Denmark for the Tour of Denmark - or Danmark Rundt. The race has grown in level over the years and has at this point become one of the month's most important events, always with a star-studded field. We preview stage 1.
Stage 1 of the race will be tacking place in the island of Bornholm. It's an interesting day of racing that will suit the sprinters but not with certainty as a final circuit can provide with some explosive action that could trigger quite a lot.
Only 1500 meters of climbing, but it comes at good timings, action-wise. The start of the day is relatively easy and the finale is quite sketchy and hilly. The riders will tackle a three-lap circuit, each including the ascent to the small Helligpeder ascent which is 700 meters long at 7.4%, with 3.5 kilometers of slight uphill terrain before a straight descent.
The peloton will finish this circuit with 15 kilometers to go, and those final kilometers will be flat into Ronne for what is an expected final sprint. The first stage can be quite tactical and if Lidl-Trek goes onto attack mode it will be very hard for any other team to control it. However taking into consideration that the terrain is not that difficult and that in a bunch sprint Mads Pedersen would likely already be the main favourite, they may instead opt for that option and try to keep the race under control. Soren Waerenskjold, after a strong Tour de France, may be a very big threat however for Lidl-Trek.
Stage 1: Nexo - Ronne, 178.5 kilometers
Prediction Tour of Denmark 2025 stage 1
*** Mads Pedersen, Jasper Philipsen
** Soren Waerenskjold, Axel Zingle, Mattias Skjelmose
* Tibor del Grosso, Soren Kragh Andersen, Magnus Cort Nielsen, Lukas Kubis, Anders Foldager, Nils Eekhoff
** Soren Waerenskjold, Axel Zingle, Mattias Skjelmose
* Tibor del Grosso, Soren Kragh Andersen, Magnus Cort Nielsen, Lukas Kubis, Anders Foldager, Nils Eekhoff
Pick: Mads Pedersen
How: Bunch sprint.
Original: Rúben Silva
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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