Around a hundred people gathered in Aigle on Sunday, one year to the day after the death of Gino Mäder. The final time trial of the Tour de Suisse to Villars-sur-Ollon was the occasion for a commemorative ride.
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Before his solo effort, Stefan Küng spoke of the tragic accident of his former colleague which occurred on June 16, 2023 during the descent of the Albula Pass. “Since Gino’s accident, I have never crossed this pass again,” he said. When I pass through the Albula again, many thoughts and memories will surely come to the surface.”
“A beautiful coincidence”
Asked about his memories of Gino Mäder, Küng replies that they mainly come from events outside the races. “Since we weren’t teammates, we spent more time together outside of competition.” Some Swiss runners often meet at the end of each season. “Last year we spent two days together mountain biking. We then all had a strong thought for Gino,” relates Küng.
The 30-year-old rider also has glowing words for the organizers of the Tour de Suisse, who are preserving Gino’s memory by dedicating the mountain’s highest prize to the #rideforgino foundation. “It is a wonderful coincidence that this year the prize was awarded precisely on the Gotthard. It was up there that Gino passed in June 2021, en route to his stage victory”, the last for a Swiss rider on a road stage of the Tour de Suisse.
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