55th Tour of Austria/Wiesbauer Tour - 2.3

Austria, June 9-15, 2003

2002 results Stage List Preview Start List Past winners

The Stages

Stage 1 - June 9: Salzburg - Salzburg, 131 km
Stage 2 - June 10: Salzburg - Bad Hofgastein, 189 km
Stage 3 - June 11: Bad Gastein - Kitzbühler Horn, 158 km
Stage 4 - June 12: Kitzbühel - St. Jakob im Defereggental, 149 km
Stage 5 - June 13: Lienz - St. Kanzian am Klopeinersee, 200 km
Stage 6 - June 14: St. Kanzian am Klopeinersee - Graz, 157 km
Stage 7 - June 15: Wien, Ringstraße circuit race, 124 km

Preview

This year's Tour of Austria/Österreich Rundfahrt (June 9-15) has been renamed the "Wiesbauer Tour", after attracting title sponsorship from this Austrian sausage manufacturer. The 2.3 classed race is seven days and seven stages long, with no time trials, but plenty of climbing. For the first time ever, the race will start in Mozart's home town of Salzburg with a 131 km stage that also finishes in Salzburg. This historic Austrian city will host the World Road Championships in 2006, so the Tour of Austria is being used as a preparation event.

The second stage will be 189 km between Salzburg and Bad Hofgastein, featuring two climbs including one Category 3 hill with 8 km to go. A critical stage will be the third from Bad Gastein to Kitzbühler Horn over 158 km. The finishing climb is rated as Hors Categorie, and measures just under 10 km at an average gradient of 13 percent. Following this stage, the riders will have to tackle the Cat. 1 Felbertauernpass on stage 4, a 14 km climb at 8 percent, but coming early in the stage. Stage four finishes in St. Jakob im Defereggental after a long uphill drag.

The fifth stage from Lienz to St. Kanzian am Klopeinersee should be one for the sprinters, with only a couple of Cat. II climbs to break things up over the 200 kilometres. Stage 6 from St. Kanzian am Klopeinersee to Graz presents the climbers with their final challenge, the Cat. 1 climb of Pack, which is 8.5 km at 10 percent but comes early in the stage. The Cat. 3 climb of Wenisbuchplatte with 9 km to go could make things interesting. The Tour of Austria finishes on June 15 with a dead flat 124 km (20 lap) circuit race around Vienna's ring road, with the start/finish in front of Vienna's famous Town Hall (Rathaus).

Defending champion is Austrian Gerrit Glomser, who'll be back with Saeco again this year to try and claim another title. Glomser was riding the Tour of Germany up until yesterday, but chose not to start today. Other riders to watch including Serguei Gontchar (De Nardi), winner of the final stage of the Giro d'Italia, Tom Steels (Landbouwkrediet-Colnago), who will be in the hunt for a stage win or two, Bo Hamburger (Formaggi Pinzolo), Austrian sprinting sensation Bernhard Eisel (Austrian National Team), Werner Riebenbauer (Team fakta), another one of Austria's fast men, and Hans-Peter Obwaller (Austrian National Team), who always does well in this race.

Start list

Saeco                                  Austrian National Team
 
1 Gerrit Glomser (Aut)                 11 Bernhard Eisel (Aut)
2 Leonardo Bertagnolli (Ita)           12 Christoph Kerschbaum (Aut)
3 Damiano Cunego (Ita)                 13 Andreas Matzbacher (Aut)
5 Igor Pugaci (Mda)                    14 Hans-Peter Obwaller (Aut)
6 Alessandro Spezialetti (Ita)         15 Martin Gratzer (Aut)
7 Andrea Tonti (Ita)                   16 Peter Pichler (Aut)
                                       17 Harald Totschnig (Aut)
 
Cofidis                                Team fakta
 
21 Arnaud Coyot (Fra)                  31 Lars Ytting Bak (Den)
22 Peter Farazijn (Bel)                32 Frank Hoj (Den)
23 Tom Flammang (Lux)                  33 Allan Bo Andresen (Den)
24 Philippe Gaumont (Fra)              34 Fredrik Modin (Swe)
25 Chris Peers (Bel)                   35 Michael Rheis (Den)
26 Jo Planckaert (Bel)                 36 Werner Riebenbauer (Aut)
27 Hayden Roulston (NZl)               37 Martin Rittsel (Swe)
 
Landbouwkrediet-Colnago                Palmans-Collstrop
 
41 Lorenzo Bernucci (Ita)              51 Davy Commeyne (Bel)
42 Bert De Waele (Bel)                 52 Andy De Smet (Bel)
43 Ludo Dierckxsens (Bel)              53 Michel Van Haecke (Bel)
44 Tom Stremersch (Bel)                54 Frederik Penne (Bel)
45 Salvatore Scamardella (Ita)         55 Kristof Trouve (Bel)
46 Tom Steels (Bel)                    56 Gert Vanderaerden (Bel)
47 Johan Verstrepen (Bel)              57 Tom Vannoppen (Bel)
 
Marlux-Wincor Nixdorf                  De Nardi - Colpack
 
62 Steven De Neef (Bel)                71 Simone Cadamuro (Ita)
63 Guillaume Girout (Bel)              72 Michele Colleoni (Ita)
64 Christophe Stevens (Bel)            73 Ondrej Fadrny (Cze)
65 Sebastien Mattozza (Bel)            74 Matteo Carrara (Ita)
66 Christian Poos (Lux)                75 Devis Miorin (Ita)
67 Saulius Ruskys (Ltu)                76 Rafael Nuritdinov (Ukr)
                                       77 Serguei Gontchar (Ukr)
 
Formaggi Pinzolo Fiave                 Team Bianchi
 
81 Bo Hamburger (Den)                  91 Jaime Bertran Hernandez (Spa)
82 Fortunato Baliani (Ita)             92 Daniel Becke (Ger)
83 Biagio Conte (Ita)                  93 Francisco Lara Ruiz (Spa)
84 Luis Laverde Jimenez (Spa)          94 Steffen Radochla (Ger)
85 Hector Mesa Mesa (Mex)              95 Thorsten Rund (Ger)
86 Markus Wimmer (Aut)                 96 Sven Teutenberg (Ger)
87 Rinaldo Nocentini (Ita)             97 Thorsten Wilhelms (Ger)
 
Vlaanderen T-Interim                   MBK - Oktos
 
101 Frederik Willems (Bel)             111 Lorenzo Di Silvestro (Ita)
102 Steven Kleynen (Bel)               112 Frederic Gabriel (Fra)
103 Jef Peeters (Bel)                  113 Ivailo Gabrovski (Bul)
104 Jehudi Schoonacker (Bel)           114 Yoann Le Boulanger (Fra)
105 Nico Sijmens (Bel)                 115 Laurent Paumier (Fra)
106 Jurgen Van De Walle (Bel)          116 Franck Pencole (Fra)
107 Rudolf Wentzel (RSA)               117 Christophe Rinero (Fra)
 
Rabobank                               Perutnina Ptuj
 
121 Theo Eltink (Ned)                  131 Valter Bonca (Slo)
122 Bernhard Kohl (Aut)                132 Massimo Demarin (Cro)
123 Joost Posthuma (Ned)               133 Tomislav Danculovic (Cro)
124 Niels Scheuneman (Ned)             134 Mitja Mahoric (Slo)
125 Rory Sutherland (Aus)              135 Bostjan Mervar (Slo)
126 Laurens Ten Dam (Ned)              136 Sasa Sviben (Slo)
127 Pieter Weening (Ned)               137 Radoslav Rogina (Slo)
 
Volksbank Ideal                        Elk-Haus
 
141 Jure Golcer (Slo)                  151 Friedrich Berein (Aut)
142 Pascal Hungerbühler (Aut)          152 Martin Fischerlehner (Aut)
143 Helmuth Schröttner (Aut)           153 Mario Höller (Aut)
144 Fraser Mcmaster (NZl)              154 Harald Morscher (Aut)
145 Christian Pfannberger (Aut)        155 Patrick Riedesser (Aut)
146 Philippe Schnyder (Aut)            157 Franz Stocher (Aut)
147 Jochen Summer (Aut)
 
Hervis-Copyright                       Arboe Merida Graz
 
161 Hannes Hempel (Aut)                171 Werner Faltheiner (Aut)
162 Petr Herman (Cze)                  172 Lukas Grundner (Aut)
163 Adam Homolka (Cze)                 173 Rene Kopeinig (Aut)
164 Paul Kasis (Aut)                   174 Martin Kraler (Aut)
165 Vladimir Novotny (Cze)             175 Manfred Leimgruber (Aut)
166 Christian Pömer (Aut)              176 Uros Silar (Slo)
167 Thomas Rohregger (Aut)             177 Michael Pichler (Aut)

Past winners

2002 Gerrit Glomser (Aut) Saeco
2001 Cadel Evans (Aus) Saeco
2000 Georg Totschnig (Aut) Telekom
1999 Maurizio Vandelli (Ita) Stabil Graz 
1998 Beat Zberg (Swi)
1997 Daniele Nardello (Ita)
1996 Frank Vandenbroucke (Bel)

Past winners by Mario Stiehl, www.world-of-cycling.com