Favorites prologue Tour of Romandie 2025 | Specialist Zijlaard wants to repeat his stunt from last year

A prologue is rare in modern cycling. It was quite common in the past, but at the highest level, only the Tour de Romandie still adheres to this tradition. The riders will start this year in Saint-Imier, a village northwest of Bern. Close to the French border, there will be a short but intense battle for the first leader's jersey.

The riders will cover 42 meters of elevation gain in 3.44 kilometers, so it's not completely flat. Furthermore, it's a course with plenty of twists and turns, with no fewer than 10 sharp bends along the way. It looks set to be a day for explosive riders with excellent steering skills.

Times
Start: 3:13 PM local time (09:13 AM EDT)
Finish: 5:35 PM local time (11:35 AM EDT)

A better spring day is almost impossible. There is lovely sunshine, with a few clouds scattered here and there, but it remains dry in Switzerland. A light breeze from the north will provide some pleasant cooling but will not affect the time trial.

It's always difficult to pick favorites for a prologue. It's not always the time trial specialists who emerge as the best. One rider we can count on is Maikel Zijlaard. The Dutchman from Tudor is proud of his status as a prologue specialist and will be looking to win the Tour de Romandie opening stage for the second year in a row.

Other riders who could do well here are the cyclo-cross riders. Their explosiveness and technical skills make them well-suited to this difficult course. Perhaps Gianni Vermeersch (Alpecin-Deceuninck) could do something here, with Johan Price-Pejtersen as his teammate. The Dane is the national time trial champion. The Swiss riders Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ) and Stefan Bissegger (Decathlon AG2R) normally perform better in longer races, but they are eager to perform well in their home country.

UAE Team Emirates—XRG has Rune Herregodts and Ivo Oliveira as tempo riders who could make an impact here. The latter is a track rider and is excellent at efforts lasting a few minutes. The same goes for Michael Hepburn. And what can we expect from Remco Evenepoel and Matthew Brennan? Their specialties lie elsewhere, but they are such great riders that they might surprise us here, too.

Other time trialists to watch are Rémi Cavagna (Groupama-FDJ), Matteo Sobrero (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), Iván Romeo (Movistar), and Michael Leonard (INEOS Grenadiers).

Top favorites: Maikel Zijlaard (Tudor), Ivo Oliveira (UAE Team Emirates - XRG)
Outsiders: Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step), Gianni Vermeersch (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Stefan Bissegger (Decathlon AG2R) and Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ).
Long shots: Rune Herregodts (UAE Team Emirates - XRG), Matteo Sobrero (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), Iván Romeo (Movistar), Michael Leonard (INEOS Grenadiers), Michael Hepburn (Jayco AlUla), Matthew Brennan (Visma | Lease a Bike), Johan Price-Pejtersen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Rémi Cavagna (Groupama-FDJ)