On Sunday, the Giro del Mendrisiotto took place, which the Volksbank riders Andreas Dietziker, Florian Stalder, Elias Schmäh and Pascal Hungerbühler tackled as part of a Swiss national team selection. They used the race to test the 2009 Worlds course, with the loop being virtually identical to what will be used for the championships next year. Dietziker won the Mendrisiotto race last year. The competition was held over 12 laps, for a total of 151.2 kilometres.
Before the race, Dietziker expected an elimination race and added that "the decision will be made on the three-kilometre long climb, to be done 12 times. In the end, a small group will fight for the win." And this is how it ended up, with eventually 13 riders contesting victory. Dietziker was in the group, but could not repeat his 2007 win. He finished fourth, which is still a good result, considering that "my form isn't comparable to last year."
