Sergio Higuita victorious in Romandie despite "really suffering out there"

BORA - hansgrohe have had a strong performance today at the Tour de Romandie, as their climbers have ridden to a great result with the first two places on the stage. The final sprint at the end of a 28-kilometer ascent was unexpected, however the scenario still fit their leaders.

"This stage win means a lot to me because I was really suffering out there. During the race I didn't feel so good due to allergies but in the finale I realised that I was stronger than the others and 200m before the finish I just went full gas," Higuita said in a post-race interview. After having lost 1:28 minutes on stage one after having been caught up in a crash, his GC ambitions were gone in relation to what the expectations were. However today's stage suited him, and BORA were not required to work in the finale as Jumbo-Visma took the responsibilities of the race.

Inside the final kilometer it became apparent that the stage would end in a sprint as the gradients were not hard enough for anyone to make a real difference. Both Higuita and Aleksandr Vlasov were in the GC group, and as the Colombian launching his move he hit the wind. BORA took an impressive one-two win, as he and Vlasov raised arms in glory.

Higuita added: "We knew we could take a win here and now it’s finally happened. I am also happy that Aleks rode really well today and was able to take second."

He still sits outside the Top20, however the team will tomorrow be hoping the Russian climber can put time into the competition and take the overall win. "I think he will put in a strong performance tomorrow in the time trial and I hope we can get a good result overall with him," Higuita concluded.