The Tour of Austria returns after three years

It’s a unique story in international cycling. Never before have the leading teams in a country come together to organize the largest national tour.

The team bosses from Hrinkow Advarics, Team Felbermayr Simplon Wels, Team Vorarlberg, Tirol KTM Cycling Team and WSA KTM Graz P/B Leomo, together with Wolfgang Konrad, Managing Director of the Vienna City Marathon, decided on the agenda for the tour organized by the Austrian Cycling Association to take over.

Tour directors are Thomas Pupp from the Tirol KTM Team and Thomas Kofler from the Vorarlberg team, with Jürgen Schatzmann from Vorarlberg being the head of organization. In terms of marketing, Innauer + (f)acts, the agency of ex-ski jumping star Toni Innauer and Wolfgang Schwarzmann, was brought on board. The name is also new, because the 72nd Int. Tour of Austria operates under the “Tour of Austria”.

criticism of the association

Catfish team manager Daniel Repitz took the same line, but also criticized the cycling association. “Actually, the ÖRV should organize the Ö-Tour – we Continental teams already have enough to organize and finance our teams. But without an Ö-Tour, the search for sponsors is becoming increasingly difficult for us too. That’s why we’re all trying to revitalize the tour together,” said Repitz, describing the tour as “vital” for the teams.

The tour is run in the UCI 2.1 category. This allows a starting field with all three professional categories: WorldTeams, ProTeams and Continental Teams. “The starting field will include 20 teams, each with seven drivers. There is a lot of interest and we already have a lot of applications. But we also approach teams proactively and would be particularly happy about WorldTeams with Austrian professionals,” explains Thomas Pupp.

Five stages from Dornbirn to the Sonntagberg

“All stage locations have been fixed and the exact route is still being worked out. We will announce the stage details in the next few weeks,” says Thomas Kofler, the tour director responsible for the route.

The big tour kick-off will take place on July 1st and 2nd, 2023 in Dornbirn. On Saturday evening, all participating teams will be presented on the large tour stage at the market square. On Sunday, the first stage will start on an attractive and exciting scenic route through numerous beautiful regions of Vorarlberg.

In the footsteps of the 2018 World Cycling Championships, the second stage leads from St. Anton am Arlberg to Innsbruck. The first steep climbs await the pros through the Inn Valley! The 3rd stage on July 4th is also the king’s stage. After the start in Sillian in East Tyrol, it goes over the Grossglockner to St. Johann/Alpendorf in Salzburg.

The penultimate stage on July 5th will also be the longest of the Tour of Austria. Here it goes from Salzburg, St. Johann/Alpendorf, through Upper Austria to the eastern border to Steyr. The grand finale of the “Tour of Austria” will take place in Lower Austria on July 6th: From Ybbs an der Donau it goes through the picturesque Mostviertel, where two laps over the poisonous ascent await at the Wahlfahrtsbasilika Sonntagberg.

A stepping stone

With new stage concepts, the organizers want to inspire the professional cyclists and spectators along the route. “Shorter stages and final rounds in the destinations should increase the excitement and variety even more. In the next three years we want to have visited all nine federal states at least once. In the next few months, however, our focus will be on the smooth implementation of the Tour of Austria 2023,” Kofler and Pupp add in unison.

The Tour of Austria has produced numerous heroes since it was first held. In recent cycling history, Patrick Konrad, Felix Großschartner, Lukas Pöstlberger and Gregor Mühlberger celebrated their first successes at home before making the leap into top international teams.

The stages at a glance:
Stage 1, July 2nd: Vorarlberg (Dornbirn – Dornbirn)
Stage 2, July 3rd: Tyrol (St. Anton – Innsbruck)
Stage 3, July 4th: East Tyrol – Salzburg (Sillian – St. Johann/Alpendorf)
4th stage, July 5th: Salzburg – Upper Austria (St. Johann/Alpendorf – Steyr)
Stage 5, July 6: Lower Austria (Ybbs an der Donau – Sonntagberg)