Tour de Pologne: Tim Merlier strikes again
![Tour de Pologne: Tim Merlier strikes again](/images/news_article/c_c/800x400/tim-merlier-poland-stage-5-victory_1723826079.jpg)
Tim Merlier picked up his 13th win of the year after producing another hugely impressive sprint at the end of Friday’s 187.6km stage five, which started and finished in Katowice. The most successful sprinter of 2024, the 31-year-old Belgian blasted around his rivals in the last 200 meters, putting a bike length into them as he made it 47 career pro victories – half of these having come in the Soudal Quick-Step jersey.
Our team controlled things from the very beginning by posting Ayco Bastiaens at the front of the peloton, who did a tremendous job controlling the breakaway and almost single-handedly reeling in the front trio before the final ten kilometers. Brought towards the front by his teammates, including Bert Van Lerberghe – who made sure his countryman was where he needed to be going under the red kite – Merlier measured his sprint perfectly and powered to a clear success, his third in two participations.
“First of all, I want to thank Ayco. He put in a strong effort, pulling almost by himself the entire stage. Then the guys kept me in the front, which allowed us to take the last corner as we wanted. I timed my acceleration perfectly, anticipating a bit, but had enough to keep it until the line. It’s a victory that makes me happy.”
“We were disappointed after Thursday’s hectic finish and were really motivated for today. Not having radios during the stage made it a bit more nervous, but we managed to keep our composure and produce a great effort to score this win. The race hasn’t been easy until now, with that hard start and the high temperatures, but we remained confident the whole time and and we can be proud of what we achieved today”, said Tim – the first Belgian in 66 years to amass three stage victories at the Tour de Pologne – who together with Paul Magnier and Warre Vangheluwe took to the podium to receive the best team of the day award.
Photo credit: ©Luc Claessen / Getty Images
Race details
1 |
Tim Merlier
Soudal Quick-Step |
4:05:00 |
2 |
Jordi Meeus Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe |
0:00 |
3 |
Olav Kooij Team Visma | Lease a Bike |
0:00 |
4 |
Jensen Plowright Alpecin - Deceuninck |
0:00 |
5 |
Jake Stewart Israel - Premier Tech |
0:00 |
6 |
Davide Cimolai Movistar Team |
0:00 |
7 |
Danny van Poppel Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe |
0:00 |
8 |
Stanisław Aniołkowski Cofidis |
0:00 |
9 |
Andrea Pasqualon Bahrain - Victorious |
0:00 |
10 |
Casper van Uden Team dsm-firmenich PostNL |
0:00 |
13 |
Paul Magnier
Soudal Quick-Step |
0:00 |
26 |
Bert Van Lerberghe
Soudal Quick-Step |
0:00 |
91 |
Martin Svrček
Soudal Quick-Step |
1:16 |
121 |
Ayco Bastiaens
Soudal Quick-Step |
2:47 |
128 |
Pepijn Reinderink
Soudal Quick-Step |
4:13 |
129 |
Warre Vangheluwe
Soudal Quick-Step |
4:13 |
1 |
Jonas Vingegaard Hansen Team Visma | Lease a Bike |
16:56:08 |
2 |
Diego Ulissi UAE Team Emirates |
0:19 |
3 |
Wilco Kelderman Team Visma | Lease a Bike |
0:20 |
4 |
Romain Grégoire Groupama - FDJ |
0:33 |
5 |
Magnus Sheffield INEOS Grenadiers |
0:37 |
6 |
Matej Mohorič Bahrain - Victorious |
0:44 |
7 |
Edoardo Zambanini Bahrain - Victorious |
0:44 |
8 |
Yannis Voisard Tudor Pro Cycling Team |
0:49 |
9 |
Mikkel Frølich Honoré EF Education - EasyPost |
0:49 |
10 |
Felix Großschartner UAE Team Emirates |
0:50 |
54 |
Martin Svrček
Soudal Quick-Step |
13:21 |
56 |
Paul Magnier
Soudal Quick-Step |
13:27 |
79 |
Pepijn Reinderink
Soudal Quick-Step |
20:51 |
116 |
Bert Van Lerberghe
Soudal Quick-Step |
33:08 |
118 |
Tim Merlier
Soudal Quick-Step |
33:29 |
119 |
Ayco Bastiaens
Soudal Quick-Step |
33:46 |
129 |
Warre Vangheluwe
Soudal Quick-Step |
37:50 |
1 |
Diego Ulissi UAE Team Emirates |
49 pt |
2 |
Jonas Vingegaard Hansen Team Visma | Lease a Bike |
48 pt |
3 |
Wilco Kelderman Team Visma | Lease a Bike |
48 pt |
4 |
Romain Grégoire Groupama - FDJ |
41 pt |
5 |
Thibau Nys Lidl - Trek |
40 pt |
6 |
Olav Kooij Team Visma | Lease a Bike |
38 pt |
7 |
Magnus Sheffield INEOS Grenadiers |
38 pt |
8 |
Tim Merlier
Soudal Quick-Step |
36 pt |
9 |
Jordi Meeus Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe |
36 pt |
10 |
Matej Mohorič Bahrain - Victorious |
34 pt |
43 |
Paul Magnier
Soudal Quick-Step |
8 pt |
56 |
Bert Van Lerberghe
Soudal Quick-Step |
1 pt |
1 |
Michał Paluta Poland |
33 pt |
2 |
Jan Maas Team Jayco AlUla |
17 pt |
3 |
Johan Jacobs Movistar Team |
3 pt |
4 |
Norbert Banaszek Poland |
3 pt |
5 |
Xabier Mikel Azparren Irurzun Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team |
2 pt |
6 |
Kacper Gieryk Poland |
2 pt |
7 |
Niklas Märkl Team dsm-firmenich PostNL |
2 pt |
8 |
Pepijn Reinderink
Soudal Quick-Step |
2 pt |
9 |
Hugo Houle Israel - Premier Tech |
1 pt |
10 |
Mick van Dijke Team Visma | Lease a Bike |
1 pt |
1 | UAE Team Emirates | 50:49:14 |
2 | Bahrain - Victorious | 3:04 |
3 | EF Education - EasyPost | 3:57 |
4 | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 7:04 |
5 | Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team | 7:33 |
6 | Movistar Team | 9:34 |
7 | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | 11:32 |
8 | Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team | 11:55 |
9 | INEOS Grenadiers | 14:50 |
10 | Cofidis | 15:04 |