Tour debutant Kanter sprints to second place – Kooij wins

German Max Kanter narrowly missed out on a sprint victory on the fifth stage of the Tour de France. Only Dutchman Olav Kooij was faster than the Tour debutant after 158,3 kilometers between Lannemezan and Pau.

July 08, 2026

From: dpa

After a crash just under five kilometers from the finish, the finale became chaotic. In the end, only a small group rode together towards the finish straight. There were no changes at the top of the overall standings. Norwegian Torstein Træen defended his lead. Top favorites Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard are 7:53 minutes behind in fourth and fifth place, respectively.

After four tough days to start, this was the first stage designed for the sprinters. Following the extreme heat of the previous day, it was somewhat cooler, but still well over 30 degrees Celsius and humid. The breakaway rider, Baptiste Veistroffer, who had attacked immediately after the start, was caught shortly before the finish.

On Thursday, the favorites and climbers will be in action again. The toughest stage of the Pyrenees features 4.100 meters of climbing, including the legendary Col du Tourmalet.

Keywords cycling Tour de France