With an even finish to the last centimeter, the finish photo showed the victory of Dutchman Olav Kooij (Visma Lease a Bike) in the fifth stage of the UAE Tour held between Al Aqah and Umm Al Quwain, 182 km, the longest in the current edition, where he avoided Tim Merlier’s triple, while Australian Jay Vine (UAE) maintained the lead.
A crazy, chaotic and highly contested finish that required a high-tech photo to define the victory for Olav Kooij, the 22-year-old who already has 30 victories on his record. With a finish time of 4h.08.38 and an average of 43.9 km/hour, he beat Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick Steo) and the Australian Sam Welsford (Bora Hansgrohe)
After a few minutes of doubt, congratulations go to the boy from Numansdorp, and also to Jay Vine, who kept the yellow jersey without a problem, with 11 seconds on his compatriot Ben O’Connor (Decathlon Ag2r) and 13 to the American and teammate. of UAE Brandon McNulty. Spanish Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious) remained fifth at 22 seconds.
There was madness, chaos, distant attacks, such as Morkov to launch Cavendish, but the “Man Express” failed to enter the battle. That was out of control, but the final battle broke out 400 meters from the line.
Olav Kooij attacked from the right, Merlier from the left, and in the middle Welsford tried to surprise. The Dutchman, always brave and ambitious, placed the wheel a few millimeters before the Belgian. And he was photographed winning in Umm Al Quwain, capital of one of the 7 emirates of the UAE.
This Saturday the sixth chapter will be marked by a flat 138 km route between the Louvre Museum and Abu Dhabi, capital of the emirate.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Robert Maynard, and I am a passionate journalist with experience in sports writing. For the last few years, I have been writing for Today Times Live. My main focus has been on sports-related stories and features. With my strong background in journalism and extensive knowledge of the industry, I am able to provide readers with well-crafted pieces that are both informative and engaging.
