(Photo Ken Conley)
Swiss time trial Olympic champion Fabian Cancellara won the Tour of Switzerland on Sunday after winning the ninth and final stage of the race , a 38.5 kilometer time trial. Cancellara beat Germany's Tony Martin, winner of Saturday's penultimate stage and second in the final stage, by 2:02 in the overall standings while Roman Kreuziger of the Czech Republic was third 2:24 adrift.
It was Cancellara's first major stage race win since the Tirreno-Adriatico in 2008. "This is a fantastic day for me," said Cancellara. "I was feeling really nervous prior to the stage, but once I got going I settled into my rhythm and felt at home. I never expected to win this race but it is truly a great feeling and an encouraging result for the Tour de France." Long-time overall leader Tadej Valjavec of Slovenia knew his game was up early on as Cancellara, who was only four seconds behind him going into Sunday's stage, and was soon behind the pace and finished 59th on the stage some 3:49 down.
73rd Tour de Suisse
June 13-21, 2009
Stage 9: June 21, Bern – Bern 38.5 Km
1. Fabian Cancellara (SUI/SAX) 45min 59sec
2. Tony Martin (GER/THR) @ 1:27
3. Thomas Dekker (NED/SIL) @ 1:42
4. Marcus Burghardt (GER/THR) @ 1:43
5. Sylvain Chavanel (FRA/QST) @ 1:48
6. Cameron Meyer (AUS/GRM) @ 1:50
7. Roman Kreuziger (CZE/LIQ) @ 2:00
8. Brian Vandborg (DEN/LIQ) @ 2:02
9. Andreas Klöden (GER/AST) @ 2:09.
10. Thor Hushovd (NOR/CTT) @ 2:14
Final Overall Classification
1. Fabian Cancellara (SUI/SAX) 33hr 05min 51sec
2. Tony Martin (GER/THR) @ 2:02
3. Roman Kreuziger (CZE/LIQ) @ 2:24
4. Andreas Klöden (GER/AST) @ 2:50
5. Vladimir Karpets (RUS/KAT) @ 3:18
6. Damiano Cunego (ITA/LAM) @ 3:23
7. Tadej Valjavec (SLO/ALM) @ 3:45
8. Rein Taaramae (EST/COF) @ 4:04
9. Kim Kirchen (LUX/THR) @ 4:04
10. Maxime Monfort (BEL/THR) @ 4:08