A former Olympic speed skater, now a Tour of the Alps stage winner: 'It feels a little bit wrong'

Lennart Jasch won the queen stage at the Tour of the Alps, without anyone really knowing who he is. He didn't feature in our favourites list, our outsiders, or our long shots — and he probably didn't feature in anyone else's either. Yet the 25-year-old German won stage four by riding clear from the breakaway and holding on all the way to the finish. The reaction at the press conference afterwards was, in a word, brilliant.

Why is it so remarkable that Jasch of all people came out on top on Thursday? Because until 2024, he wasn't a professional cyclist at all — he was a long-track speed skater. From 2011 to 2024, he competed at the highest level alongside his younger sister Maira. She finished eighth in the 5,000 metres at the most recent Winter Olympics in Italy.

Lennart had talent too — but when he picked up an injury in 2023, the bike became his new passion. "I got injured and had to do my rehabilitation on the bike. I realised pretty quickly that I was very good when it came to the watts. I got in contact with someone who brought me to MaxSolar Cycling Team in 2024," Jasch explained at the post-stage press conference.

After a year racing at club level — immediately making an impression in predominantly German and Austrian races — Jasch joined the Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe development team in 2025. "And this year I moved to Tudor's development team. I was put in the Tour of the Alps to help Michael Storer win — and now I'm sitting here and he isn't."

"That feels a little bit wrong," Jasch laughed. He had also ridden the Tour of the Alps with Red Bull in 2025, spending two consecutive days in the breakaway — only for it to end in disappointment. "I had to abandon on the fourth day because of bad weather. The fact that I'm sitting here now shows how much has happened."

"The fact that I don't even realise this was the queen stage gives you some idea of how overwhelmed I am by this situation," he continued. "I knew fairly quickly that I had good legs today, so I went for it — but it was unbelievably hard right to the very end. I never knew for certain that I was going to make it. I only thought so when I turned onto the final straight. That feeling was incredible."

Jasch was naturally asked about the future — because if you can win a mountain stage after just two and a half years in the sport, what else might be possible? "I had a lot to learn in my first year, but the learning curve has been quite steep for me over the past couple of years." He didn't have a clear answer just yet. "I can't believe it. Maybe this is the best day of my life."

A moment later, he added: "In Germany we have a saying: even when you're as old as a cow, you can still learn. My room to grow is huge — but time will tell how much I need and how much I'm actually capable of learning. When I look at what I've already picked up in the past two years, it's impossible to say what might still be possible."

His skating career is worth more than just a mention, he said — it played a crucial role. "If I hadn't been a speed skater, I wouldn't be sitting here right now. It's part of my history, and because of it I've always trained a lot on the bike. I also did a lot of strength training, which a lot of riders perhaps don't do."

"That has undoubtedly helped me — as has the fact that in speed skating I had to be completely focused for six and a half to seven minutes. That was also roughly the length of the final decisive climb. It allowed me to attack."