Gamlitz/Vienna, July 8, 2026

Gregor Mühlberger won the first stage of the 75th Tour of Austria from Graz to Gamlitz over 188 kilometers in a solo ride on Wednesday and took over the leader's jersey of the domestic tour.

The 32-year-old Lower Austrian, who rides for Team Austria, attacked after 177 of 188 kilometers near the Slovenian border and left his rivals behind. After more than 2,700 meters of climbing and a race time of 4:21:02 hours, he crossed the finish line in Gamlitz with an eleven-second lead over the American Kevin Vermaerke of UAE Team. The chasing group, which reached the finish together, was led by a trio from Lidl-Trek: Spain's Hector Alvarez finished third, the Dutchman Bauke Mollema fourth, and Italy's Andrea Bagioli fifth.

Mühlberger was visibly moved at the finish. „Ich bin richtig glücklich, das macht mich unheimlich stolz", Mühlberger said at the finish. Describing the key phase of the race, he reported: „Von der Bergwertung bis ins Ziel war es deutlich länger als gedacht. Mein Team hat mich in Top-Position in den Anstieg gebracht. Es war schon viel Risiko dabei, denn ich habe nicht gewusst, was die anderen noch draufhaben." He described his breakaway as a daring maneuver in an ORF interview: „Es war ein bisschen eine Kamikaze-Partie, weil ich bergab nicht der Stärkste bin", Mühlberger said.

Reactions from the winner

For the home fans, the start of the Tour of Austria was a day of celebration: With Patrick Konrad (Lidl-Trek), another red-white-red rider finished in the top 15, though he already trailed by 1:07 minutes. Michael Gogl (Alpecin-Premier Tech) was the second-best Austrian in sixth place, 0:11 seconds behind the winner. The other Austrian starters followed at greater distances: Martin Messner finished 21st, Riccardo Zoidl 34th, and Patrick Gamper trailed by 1:38 minutes after the opening stage.

Behind Mühlberger and the leading group, Carlos Rodriguez (Spain) finished tenth and Andrew August (USA) 14th. Britain's Finlay Pickering finished eighth, his compatriot Paul Double ninth. The ten-second gap to the lead meant the same time gap in the general classification for all chasers.

Preview of the queen stage

Already on Thursday, the riders face the queen stage of the tour. The start is at 11:00 a.m. in Bad Kleinkirchheim, with riders expected at approximately 3:15 p.m. at the Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe after 188.8 km with 2,914 meters of climbing. Mühlberger has „super Erinnerungen" of the Großglockner; he most recently helped his teammate Felix Gall to second place at the Giro and now goes into Thursday's stage to the roof of the tour with great hopes. Twelve years ago, the then-youngster already crowned himself king of the Glockner, though that is of course history: „Ich habe super Erinnerungen, aber es ist doch schon lange her."

With a view to the upcoming mountain finish, the 32-year-old announced: „Ich habe ein superstarkes Team, natürlich heißt es, das zu verteidigen." At the same time, he was combative: he wants to ride „was die Beine hergeben". The stage will be broadcast live on ORF1 starting at 1:30 p.m.

Overall standings after stage 1

The stage victory in Gamlitz is the second major Austrian tour success in a short time: Just a few weeks ago, Mühlberger helped his teammate Felix Gall to second place at the Giro d'Italia. With the solo ride and the gain of the leader's jersey, the 32-year-old now also takes the lead in the general classification of the 75th Tour of Austria. „Ich habe ein superstarkes Team, natürlich heißt es, das zu verteidigen", Mühlberger had announced after the race. On the way to a possible overall victory, three more stages remain after the Glockner stage.

The remaining stages of the 2026 Tour of Austria: After the mountain finish at the Großglockner, Friday's stage follows from Bad Kleinkirchheim with a finish at the Großglockner over 188.8 km. The total distance of the tour is 845 kilometers with a total of 11,024 meters of climbing. The queen stage will be broadcast live on ORF1 starting at 1:30 p.m.

Looking at the overall standings, Mühlberger leads the classification after the first of five stages. His lead over the chasing group is 11 seconds, already 1:07 minutes over Patrick Konrad. The gap to the overall leader will be reshuffled on the coming stages, especially at the Großglockner.

Historical context

With today's victory, Mühlberger has set the course for a possible home victory at the 75th Tour of Austria. Should the Lower Austrian successfully defend his lead, it would be his first overall victory at a domestic national tour. The starting position before the queen stage could hardly be better.

The Austrian's series of attacks is reminiscent of his earlier successes in the grand tours. At the Giro d'Italia, Mühlberger had already shone as a helper in the final phase and paved his captain's way to the podium. Now he steps into the role of the protagonist himself – and at his home tour of all places, which holds a special significance for Austrian cycling fans.

Team Austria can be more than satisfied with the start. Alongside Mühlberger's solo success, Gogl, Messner, and Gamper, three other home riders finished in the points. Team Austria thus clearly leads the domestic classification in the overall standings, even though the international competition – above all Lidl-Trek with three riders in the top 5 – is strongly represented.

Significance for domestic cycling

The conditions on Wednesday in southeastern Styria were conducive to a solo ride over eleven kilometers. On the rolling terrain near the Slovenian border, Mühlberger was able to hint at his strength in the high mountains – precisely the quality that should benefit him on Thursday at the Großglockner.

Reactions on social media and among fans were unanimous: The hashtag #Mühlberger was trending across Austria on late Wednesday afternoon. Cycling commentators spoke of a „historischen Auftakt" of the domestic tour. Felix Gall, who had himself shone at the Giro, also congratulated his teammate via social media.

Media response and TV ratings

For the Tour of Austria, which celebrates its 75th anniversary this year, the opening is a genuine promotional boost. The organizers were able to record record ratings for the live broadcast on Wednesday, particularly since ORF1 had broadcast the stage starting at 1:30 p.m. Thursday's queen stage is likely to surpass these numbers.