Silence-Lotto's Robbie McEwen revitalised his hopes of taking a stage of the 2008 Tour de France, when he out-sprinted Oscar Freire (Rabobank) to take the third stage of the 72nd Tour de Suisse.
"This is fantastic, I won thanks to the great work done by the entire team," McEwen told Sporza. "In the finale, [Leif] Hoste and [Greg] Van Avermaet were great, they did a fantastic job.
"Earlier I won a stage in at the Tour of Romandie, but at the Giro d'Italia I wasn't able to do my best due to a crash," he added. "Thanks to this win, my season has gained some allure."
This win is McEwen's second of the season after the Tour or Romandie. The 35 year-old won 15 times in 2007 but has been struggling this season with injury and bad luck.
"This is also good for my confidence going into the Tour," said the Australian. "The team is not going for the green jersey, so I will have to look after myself."
McEwen won Stage 5 of the 2007 Tour de Suisse before going onto win stage one of the 2007 Tour de France.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
