Stefan Kueng wins chilly Tour of Romandie stage

Stefan Kueng from Switzerland of team BMC Racing raises his arms after crossing the finish line to win the second stage in the 71st Tour de Romandie UCI ProTour cycling race in Chatelard, Switzerland. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP)

CHAMPERY, Switzerland — Stefan Kueng won a shortened Tour of Romandie stage Thursday that started on snow-lined roads, ended in chilling rain and left the top of the overall standings unchanged.

The Swiss rider outlasted Andriy Grivko of Ukraine in a two-man sprint more than 3-1/2 hours after racers left Aigle instead of the planned start at Champery ski station.

Organizers cut about 25 kilometres (15 miles) from the route to "protect the peleton from unnecessary risks" in snow and cold temperatures.

Third-place Sonny Colbrelli of Italy won the bunch sprint 20 seconds behind the leaders.

Fabio Felline of Italy finished safely in sixth to retain his overall lead in the six-day race, which finishes Sunday.

The 23-year-old Kueng also won a stage in cold and rain in the 2015 Tour of Romandie, and is seen as a contender to inherit the now-retired Fabian Cancellara’s status as the Swiss cycling star.

Friday’s stage is a 187-kilometre (116-mile) ride starting and finishing in Payerne.

[relatedlinks]

When submitting content, please abide by our submission guidelines, and avoid posting profanity, personal attacks or harassment. Should you violate our submissions guidelines, we reserve the right to remove your comments and block your account. Sportsnet reserves the right to close a story’s comment section at any time.