Tudor without the leaders at the Tour de Romandie

On the eve of the start in Villars-sur-Glâne, the mood in the team was still relaxed. But when it came to formulating their ambitions for the Tour of Western Switzerland, sports director Morgan Lamoisson's face turned serious: "We've had to contend with a lot of crashes and other physical setbacks recently. For this edition, we want to be present in breakaway groups and repeat last year's success by getting one of our riders into the top 10."

The leaders are missing

The latest results do not allow for excessive optimism. The Ardennes Classics came to an end on Sunday with Liège-Bastogne-Liège - without the stars Matteo Trentin and Julian Alaphilippe as well as the Swiss top performers Stefan Küng and Marc Hirschi.

With the figureheads missing, the team led by Fabian Cancellara is making room for the younger riders in this Tour de Romandie. Yannis Voisard from Jura, who won a stage at the AlUla Tour in Saudi Arabia at the beginning of the year, is hungry for his fourth Tour de Romandie. After a virus that forced him to abandon the Tour of the Basque Country, he feels fit again.

Premiere for Robin Donzé

"We really want to shine on a stage. There are only fifteen teams at the start, but the competition is strong," said Lamoisson. In view of the presence of Slovenian high-flyer Tadej Pogacar, the opportunities will inevitably become rarer. "The fact that he's there doesn't directly change our tactics, because it's not our job to win the overall standings," the French strategist clarified.

In contrast to his Swiss teammates Joel Suter and Roland Thalmann, Robin Donzé from the Jura will be at the start of the Tour de Romandie for the first time. His primary task will be to support Voisard - or more, if the opportunity arises. "If I get the freedom to go into an escape group, I can hope to go far," said Donzé, who can imagine attacking early on the queen stage from Broc to Charmey on Saturday.

Voisard in lurking position

As the designated co-leader alongside the German Marco Brenner, Voisard did not hide the fact that the Tudor team is currently going through a difficult phase. "I'd be lying if I said that the absence of our regulars hasn't had an impact on morale. But now we want to show a reaction," said the 27-year-old.

As Tudor prepares to take on the Tour de France for the first time at the beginning of July, the roads of Romandie offer the ideal opportunity to recharge his batteries.