diff --git a/.gitlab-ci.yml b/.gitlab-ci.yml
index f8ad4f14e4cf68bcc970c3ca60e3c64ed102a1d7..48d97b2f2dbfcb5d19768e910c011a73dc21537c 100644
--- a/.gitlab-ci.yml
+++ b/.gitlab-ci.yml
@@ -1,6 +1,5 @@
 stages:
   - build
-  - sync
 
 variables:
   SPACK_VERSION: v0.18.1
@@ -204,7 +203,7 @@ build-spack-env-on-runner:
 
 
 sync-gitlab-spack-instance:
-  stage: sync
+  stage: build
   tags:
     - docker-runner
     - read-write