Tim Merlier is in good form at the AlUla Tour: the Belgian from Soudal Quick-Step took his second victory in the competition. He sought victory as the sprint approached, and managed to maintain his power, despite the advance of Bryan Coquard (Cofidis). Casper van Uden (DSM-firmenich PostNL) came third.
Initial escape
It took more than an hour from the start for three cyclists to achieve their escape of the day. Euskaltel-Euskadi’s Iker Bonillo, Terengganu Cycling Team’s Andreas Miltiadis and Roojai Insurance’s Tegsh-bayar Batsaikhan opened up a lead of over four minutes. Miltiadis tried to go alone in the last hour, but ended up catching up in the last ten kilometers.
The race had a dramatic end with a crash involving around twenty riders, just six kilometers from the finish line. Tudor team’s Arvid de Kleijn lost his pedal and suffered a painful fall, while Astana Qazaqstan’s Henok Mulubrhan and UAE’s Juan Sebastian Molano were also victims of the accident.
Sprint final
At the front, sprint preparation from teams like Soudal Quick-Step and Cofidis continued as quickly as ever. But Team DSM-firmenich PostNL, the team of general classification leader Casper van Uden, also had a lot of confidence in their sprinter following a stage win earlier this week.
Nils Eekhoff was pushing hard for the Dutch team in the final kilometer, to put Van Uden in an ideal position to start the sprint. However, Tim Merlier surprised Van Uden with a very early acceleration.
However, in the final meters, the Belgian from Soudal Quick-Step seemed unable to maintain maximum speed until the end. Merlier saw Bryan Coquard approaching. The Frenchman threw his hands up, but it was Merlier who won by a few centimeters.
Watch the arrival
Results of the 4th stage of the AlUla Tour 2024
AlUla Tour general classification after the 4th stage
