Amber Kraak solos to victory on Tour de Suisse Women stage 2

Amber Kraak (FDJ-Suez) soloed to victory in Oberkirch on stage 2 of the Tour de Suisse Women after she attacked alone from the break of the day on the final climb of Buechenhübeli. The Dutchwoman came home 1:55 ahead of fellow escapee Marta Lach (SD Worx - Protime), while Elise Chabbey (FDJ-Suez) took third at 2:43.

Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto) showed invention to clip away from the GC group in the finale, and she came home with Chabbey to gain 30 seconds on her rivals in the finale. 

Yellow jersey Marlen Reusser (Movistar) and Demi Vollering (FDJ-Suez) once again marked one another closely, and there was no change in their status atop the overall standings. Reusser is four seconds up on Vollering and 1:21 ahead of Niewiadoma as the race reaches its midpoint.

The stage began with a bracing climb to Schönreid but despite the early aggression of Julie van de Velde, EF Education-Oatly controlled the early exchanges. The break of the day took shape with a little over 100km to go, when Kraak, Lach, Henrietta Christie (EF Education-Oakly),  Agnieszka Skalniak-Sójka (Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto) and Carina Schrempf (Fenix-Deceuninck) forged clear.

They had 3:50 in hand by the foot of the category 1 Schallenberg and they were almost seven minutes clear by the time Lach led them over the summit. Behind, Canyon began to up the pace on behalf of Niewiadoma, with the Pole eager to recoup some of the ground she lost to Vollering and Reusser on the opening day.

By the following climb of Wintermatt, the break was down to four riders, with Skalniak-Sójka dropping back, and the gap was inside four minutes. The escape would eventually fragment completely on the final climb of Buechenhübeli with 25km to go, where Kraak forged clear alone to stage victory.

Behind, Niewiadoma made a pair of bracing attacks, but she couldn’t get any separation from her GC rivals while the yellow jersey Reusser and Vollering marked one another tightly.

Their vigilance would allow Niewiadoma the chance to slip clear on the run-in, and she clipped half a minute off her deficit to the top two, though she remains some way behind as the race enters its second half.

Reusser (Movistar) retains the yellow jersey, four seconds ahead of Demi Vollering (FDJ-Suez) and 1:21 up on Niewiadoma.