Dutch rider Olav Kooij won the fifth stage of the Tour de France in a sprint finish on Wednesday, while Norwegian rider Torstein Traeen kept the yellow jersey on a day when the peloton largely took it easy.
Tour contender Jonas Vingegaard, however, finished on teammate Victor Campenaerts' bike after a late crash in the peloton, which included defending champion Tadej Pogacar.
Kooij, meanwhile, was put in a strong position to attack by his Decathlon CMA CGM teammates and held off German Max Kanter and Belgian Tim Merlier in a dash to the line. They all finished in just under three and a half hours.
“After a couple of hard days here, I had to wait for this day to get (a) first chance to sprint in the Tour and to immediately win is unbelievable,” the 24-year-old Kooij said.
“It was quite an easy day until the final (moments), when you know it will be hectic. Everyone is still really eager and I just managed to find my way.”