SERFAUS, Austria, June 17, 2009 (AFP) – Swiss rider Michael Albasini of the Columbia team won the fifth stage of the Tour of Switzerland, a 202 km ride from Staefa in Switzerland to Serfaus in Austria.

Slovenian Tadej Valjavec of the AG2R team retained the race lead, even managing to drop his biggest rival on Wednesday – Luxembourg’s Andy Schleck – down the overall standings.

Valjavec now leads Swiss rider Oliver Zaugg, of Liquigas, by 14secs with four stages remaining although defending champion Roman Kreuziger of the Czech Republic is fourth overall at just 42sec and German Andreas Kloden is fifth at 45.

Andy Schleck, whose brother Frank is also racing here, dropped from second place overall at 02secs to 13th and is now 1:07 in arrears.

In all, it proved a very mediocre day for Schleck and Cancellara’s Saxo Bank team.

Cancellara, the Olympic time trial champion, battled hard in the closing few hundred meters for the victory but Albasini got the final jump on the big Swiss, who could only finish runner-up.

Italian Damiano Cunego of Lampre took third place as the 28-year-old Albasini grabbed his second stage win of the race, after his maiden win here in 2005, to make it an impressive 38 wins this season for Columbia.

“I had to push myself hard to win, but it was worth it to win the hardest stage of the race,” Albasini said.

“I didn’t know the climbs at all, either, because it’s a long way from my home in Switzerland.

“Fortunately I was able to get on Fabian Cancellara’s wheel when he went for another rider who’d already attacked in the last kilometer.”

Albasini added: “I’ve been targeting this race since the beginning of May, because this is my home race and so obviously it’s a big goal for me. Winning here in Switzerland is always special for a Swiss rider.”

The leaders were among the main pack which earlier caught up with a rogue pair who had sped in front on the descent from the 1793 metre Arbergpas, then over the border into Austria.

On the final incline up to the the finish line here, Germany’s Tony Martin of Columbia attacked on several occasions, but he was soon overhauled, as was Estonian Rein Taaramae of Cofidis after his late surge to the front.

The racers are back in Switzerland for Thursday’s sixth stage, a 177km ride from Oberriet to Bad Zurzach.

The nine-stage race, finishing in Berne on Sunday, is the last big warm-up for the Tour de France which starts on July 4 at Monaco

Stage 5
1. Michael Albasini (SUI/THR) 5hr 24min 03sec, 2. Fabian Cancellara
(SUI/SAX) same time, 3. Damiano Cunego (GER/LAM) s.t., 4. Oliver Zaugg
(SUI/LIQ) s.t., 5. Vladimir Karpets (RUS/KAT) s.t., 6. Roman Kreuziger
(CZE/LIQ) s.t., 7. Frank Schleck (LUX/SAX) s.t., 8. Andreas Kloden (GER/AST) s.t., 9. Tadej Valjavec (SLO/ALM) s.t., 10. Kim Kirchen (LUX/THR) s.t.
Selected
25. Andy Schleck (LUX/SAX) 1:05

Overall
1. Tadej Valjavec (SLO/ALM) 18hr 52min 01sec, 2. Oliver Zaugg (SWI/LIQ) at 14sec, 3. Fabian Cancellara (SUI/SAX) 14, 4. Roman Kreuziger (CZE/LIQ) 42, 5.
Andreas Kloden (GER/AST) 45, 6. Tony Martin (GER/THR) 54, 7. Maxime Monfort
(BEL/THR) 55, 8. Gustav Larsson (SWE/SAX) 56, 9. Vladimir Karpets (RUS/KAT) 1:01, 10. Rein Taaramae (EST/COF) 1:02
Selected
11. Damiano Cunego (GER/LAM) s.t., 13. Andy Schleck (LUX/SAX) 1:07, 14.
Frank Schleck (LUX/SAX) 1:08, 15. Kim Kirchen (LUX/THR) 1:24