Tim Merlier Takes Tour Stage 5 Third After 5.6km Crash Wrecks Lead-Out

Q: How did a 24-year-old rookie conquer the Tour de France after a season-derailing illness?

He did not conquer the Tour de France overall. What happened is that Olav Kooij, 24, won Stage 5 on his Tour de France debut after overcoming an illness-hit spring that had sharply limited his season. The available reporting shows Kooij’s 2026 campaign was disrupted by a virus, leaving him with only nine race days before the Tour. Even so, he rebuilt form quickly enough to arrive with three wins already on the board, including stages at the Baloise Belgium Tour and Boucles de la Mayenne. After the Pau finish, Kooij said the key was “to get back to this level and to keep believing in yourself.” His victory also reflected preparation and team support. Stage 5 was the race’s first true flat sprint opportunity, with a fast, uncomplicated final kilometer designed for the pure sprinters. Decathlon CMA-CGM then executed strongly, with Cees Bol, Daan Hoole and Tiesj Benoot delivering Kooij into position before he finished comfortably ahead of Max Kanter. Kooij is not a novice in the broader sense. Although this is his first Tour de France, he arrived as an established sprinter with 47 wins before joining Decathlon CMA-CGM from Visma | Lease a Bike, plus previous Grand Tour stage victories at the Giro d’Italia and three stage wins at the 2025 Tour of Britain. In that sense, the Pau result was less a shock than proof that a proven finisher had recovered in time and seized the first clear chance available.

3 articles · Updated · Yahoo Sports · Jul 8

Third-placed Tim Merlier said a crash with 5.6km left in Pau ruined Soudal Quick-Step’s sprint plan, leaving him disappointed rather than encouraged by the result.
Half of his eight-man team went down or were delayed when the peloton split, including key lead-out riders Jasper Stuyven and Bert van Lerberghe, forcing Merlier to improvise alone in the finale.
Merlier came from far back under the flamme rouge and found space on the left to finish third, but said repeated positioning errors and extra effort cost him too much speed against stage winner Olav Kooij.
Tom Steels said Merlier had the legs to win with a full lead-out, and the team now turns to Friday’s Bordeaux sprint as his next Tour de France opportunity.