Merlier sprints to victory in Tour
de France Stage 9 after Van der Poel's breakaway is thwarted
[July 14, 2025]
CHATEAUROUX, France (AP) — Belgian sprinter Tim Merlier won
the ninth stage of the Tour de France in a mass sprint after Mathieu
van der Poel spent the whole day at the front before being caught by
the chasing pack less than a kilometer from the finish.
There was no significant change in the overall standings and
three-time Tour champion Tadej Pogačar kept the race leader's yellow
jersey.
Sunday’s stage headed into central France on a 174-kilometer
(108-mile) flat stretch for sprinters.
But Van der Poel, a one-day classics specialist with a flamboyant
style of riding, almost foiled their plans.
The Dutch rider joined his Alpecin-Deceuninck teammate Jonas
Rickaert in an early breakaway and produced a tremendous effort over
173 kilometers at a speed of about 30 mph (48 kph) but could not go
all the way and was swallowed less than a kilometer from the line.
"It’s hard not to be able to finish it off,” Van der Poel said.
Merlier won the sprint ahead of Jonathan Milan, the winner of
Saturday's stage, with Arnaud De Lie completing the podium. It was
Merlier's second stage win of this year’s Tour.
“I got boxed in a bit but then I managed to go all in and I was able
to do my sprint like I wanted to and I’m happy to win my second
stage here,” Merlier said. "It’s the second time I manage to beat
Milan but he’s a really strong sprinter. It’s just nice we can show
a nice battle between the two of us.”
In the overall standings, double Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel
remained 54 seconds behind Pogačar in second place. Frenchman Kévin
Vauquelin was third at 1 minutes, 11 seconds, and two-time Tour
champion Jonas Vingegaard sat 1:17 behind in fourth spot.
Ealier in the stage, João Almeida, a key teammate of Pogačar,
abandoned the race. Almeida, who fractured a rib during Stage 7, was
dropped early and the UAE Team Emirates-XRG later announced over the
race radio that the Portuguese rider had retired.
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Netherlands' Frank van den Broek rides during the ninth stage of the
Tour de France cycling race over 174.1 kilometers (108 miles) with
start in Chinon and finish in Chateauroux, France, Sunday, July 13,
2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
Almeida was caught in a high-speed crash earlier
this week as riders scrambled for position at the front, 6
kilometers (4 miles) from the finish line. Almeida escaped without a
concussion but his rib fracture finally proved to be too painful to
carry on in the three-week race.
Almeida finished fourth at the 2024 Tour de France and started this
year's edition on the back of strong results elsewhere, having won
the Tour de Suisse, Tour de Romandie and Itzulia Basque Country.
Monday's stage
The mountainous stage on Bastille Day from Ennezat to Le Mont-Dore
features seven second-category hills or passes. The final climb has
an 8% gradient.
“We expect a very hot, hard stage tomorrow,” Pogačar said. “There
will be a huge fight for the break, as it’s the French national day
and all French riders will want to put on a great show. It will be
hard to control, but we will be up there paying attention to the
other team’s moves. It’s not the hardest course, but it offers a lot
of possibilities.”
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