In impressive fashion, Andreas Klöden powered his Trek Equinox TTX to victory in the third stage of the Tour the Romandie, an 18.8 km individual time trial in Sion. With today’s win, Klöden captured the leader’s yellow jersey and will look to defend his race lead over the final two stages. The 32 year-old German’s victory is the first of his 2008 season and 21st as a professional rider.
Klöden’s time-trial skills helped him escape a near crash in the last 200 meters, which included three technical corners. “I went so fast that when I used my brakes, my back wheel locked. Fortunately I was able to keep myself on the bike by hitting the publicity boarding with my shoulders,” commented Klöden.
The technical finish wasn’t the only battle for Klöden. In the first part he rode against a strong head wind, resulting in a 7 seconds loss to last year’s overall winner Thomas Dekker. The Astana Cycling Team rider quickly regained the time on the next climb, where he held a 17 seconds advantage over Dekker going into the descent.
Klöden knew the climb would be decisive and is motivated to keep the leader’s jersey. “It was quite challenging with the head wind, but I remained focused on having a strong ride up the climb and took the jersey. I know that tomorrow will be tough with four climbs, but I’m confident in the Team’s ability to control the race. With four riders in the top 11, it shows that we are in good shape and motivated to win here.”
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