{"id":252120,"date":"2026-07-09T05:46:55","date_gmt":"2026-07-09T05:46:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/09\/i-was-alone-door-open-for-next-tour-de-france-sprints-with-speed-but-not-luck-on-tim-merliers-side-in-pau\/"},"modified":"2026-07-09T05:46:55","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T05:46:55","slug":"i-was-alone-door-open-for-next-tour-de-france-sprints-with-speed-but-not-luck-on-tim-merliers-side-in-pau","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/09\/i-was-alone-door-open-for-next-tour-de-france-sprints-with-speed-but-not-luck-on-tim-merliers-side-in-pau\/","title":{"rendered":"‘I was alone’ \u2013 Door open for next Tour de France sprints with speed, but not luck, on Tim Merlier’s side in Pau"},"content":{"rendered":"

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That run toward the line in Pau on stage 5 of the Tour de France was what Tim Merlier and his Soudal-QuickStep team had been waiting for<\/a>, finally a sprint chance for the rider who won two stages of the 2025 edition and this year largely carries the hopes of his squad now that Remco Evenepoel has moved on.<\/p>\n

Conserving energy through the tough opening stages, his team were switched on for Wednesday, doing their bit to make sure the break didn’t spoil the sprint chance. As the finale approached the attackers had been reeled in and it looked like the time had come to unfurl a sprint masterclass that would make the four days of suffering through the climbs and heat worth it.<\/p>\n

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