Vincenzo Albanese pounced in the closing metres to win the second stage of the Tour of Switzerland on Monday.
The Italian was one of three riders who gave chase when Quinn Simmons shot off the front of the pack with 600 metres to go.
As the American national champion faltered in the finishing straight, Albanese burst past and edged Swiss rider Fabio Christen and Briton Lewis Askey to the line.
It was Albanese's first win at World Tour level.
Albanese robs first Swiss stage victory from Christen🤌😉 pic.twitter.com/NYJRIBveeE
— Tour de Suisse (@tds) June 16, 2025
"I'm very very happy," he said, adding that he was at the front of the pack because he was supposed to lead out EF Education team-mate Madis Mihkels.
"I saw some guys go off the front and I chased," he said. "At 200 metres from the finish I thought 'go'."
A 177-kilometre rolling run from Aarau that ended with an uphill drag to Lac Noir was not steep enough to break up the peloton.
Frenchman Romain Gregoire, who won the opening stage in a breakaway, increased his overall lead by one second after taking a second bonus during the stage.
The stage coincided with the second anniversary of the death of Gino Maeder.
The 26-year-old Swiss rider died of his injuries following a high-speed crash on a descent at the end of stage 5 of the 2023 Tour of Switzerland.
"Two years without you, and not a day goes by without thinking of you," his Bahrain team posted on social media just before the start.
❤️ Forever in our hearts, Gino.
— Team Bahrain Victorious (@BHRVictorious) June 16, 2025
Two years without you, and not a day goes by without thinking of you. #rideforGino pic.twitter.com/Pt9FVFZJdl
Tuesday's third stage, 195.6km from Aarau to Heiden is another hilly run with a rising finish.
The eight-day Tour of Switzerland is the final significant stage race before the start of the Tour de France on July 5.