Snow, cold brings Romandie stage start down from mountains

CHAMPERY, Switzerland (AP) Stefan Kueng won a shortened Tour of Romandie stage Thursday that started on snow-lined roads, ended in chilling rain and left the top of the overall standings unchanged.

The Swiss rider outlasted Andriy Grivko of Ukraine in a two-man sprint more than 3-1/2 hours after racers left Aigle instead of the planned start at Champery ski station.

Organizers cut about 25 kilometers (15 miles) from the route to ''protect the peleton from unnecessary risks'' in snow and cold temperatures.

Third-place Sonny Colbrelli of Italy won the bunch sprint 20 seconds behind the leaders.

Fabio Felline of Italy finished safely in sixth to retain his overall lead in the six-day race, which finishes Sunday.

The 23-year-old Kueng also won a stage in cold and rain in the 2015 Tour of Romandie, and is seen as a contender to inherit the now-retired Fabian Cancellara's status as the Swiss cycling star.

Friday's stage is a 187-kilometer (116-mile) ride starting and finishing in Payerne.