UAE Tour stage 1: Tim Merlier wins amid huge crash in home straight

Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step) cruised to victory on the opening stage of the UAE Tour, in a chaotic bunch sprint that saw a huge crash in the home straight.

Arvid De Kleijn (Tudor Pro Cycling) claimed second place, and Jakub Mareczko (Corratec-Vini Fantini) the final spot on the podium, as the majority of the peloton was held up behind the crash.

Only around 25 riders were left to finish the stage unhindered, as the crash spread across the breadth of the road with 200 metres to go. It was unclear what exactly was the cause, but a rider went down in the middle of the bunch, sparking a chain reaction that saw riders and bikes flying into both sets of barriers.

It is unclear at this point whether any injuries were sustained, but all riders at least picked themselves up and crossed the line, in dribs and drabs, to finish the stage and remain in the race.

Amid the melée, Merlier remained calm and punished the Colombian duo of Juan Sebastián Molano (UAE Team Emirates) and Fernando Gaviria (Movistar) for their early long-range efforts.

The Belgian opted not to follow his own lead-out man in a bid to track the Colombians and while they may have got a jump on him, he steadily wound it up, drew up alongside them with 75 metres to go, then eased out in front as they started to fade.

© Tim de Waele/Velo Collection via Getty Images

The throw for the line

"I made the decision to go on the other side with 500m to go, and I made a good decision there to go alone," Merlier said of his decision to abandon his lead-out.

"At first I was a bit blocked, a bit too early in the wind, but Gaviria and Molano went from far. I made a bit of a mistake with the gears, but when I was on my speed I was coming back and the finish line was just far enough."

De Kleijn and Mareczko nipped out to take the podium spots, finishing ahead of a host of big names, in what is a stacked sprinting field. Many of them, however, will feel they didn't have the chance to sprint, with Fabio Jakobsen (dsm-firmenich-PostNL) and Sam Welsford (Bora-Hansgrohe) both moving past Molano and Gaviria but unable to really strike out.

Olav Kooij (Visma-Lease A Bike) didn't really open the taps, while Mark Cavendish (Astana Qazaqstan) trailed home behind that bunch having just about avoided the crash.

"There is big competition here for the sprints, almost everyone is here," said Merlier, who pulls on the first red jersey as overall leader of the race. "I'm happy to have first one, so the next days are a bit more relaxed."

Calm then chaos

The opening stage of the 2024 UAE Tour measured 141km from Al Dhafra Walk to Liwa in Abu Dhabi, on largely flat terrain but with the threat of crosswinds as the race ventured out into the open desert.

Despite a stiff breeze, there was nothing of the sort of strength or direction that would split the race in the way the chaotic echelons did on the corresponding stage last year.

The day's breakaway comprised only two riders, from the same team: the Corratec-Vini Fantini duo of Marco Murgano and Mark Stewart.

Together, they built a lead of around four minutes after an hour of racing but were kept well under control, and were comfortably reeled in with 20km to go.

The catch came just after the intermediate sprint, where Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious), a contender for the overall title, nipped through to claim a solitary, but potentially significant, bonus second.

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The breakaway duo out in the dunes

There were no fresh attacks in the final 20km and the peloton made its way calmly towards the finale, before the battle for position ramped up in the final 10km. Sam Bennett's Decathlon-AG2R squad held the front for a while before Ineos Grenadiers came through for Elia Viviani with powerhouse Tobias Foss, who'll use a 68-tooth chainring in Tuesday's stage 2 time trial.

Bora-Hansgrohe and Visma-Lease A Bike held the reins going into the final 2km, but then things started to become messy, with representatives from a range of teams swapping places on the front. It quickly became clear there'd be no long, smooth lead-out as the last bend was rounded and the home straight yawned open.

Riders from Decathlon and Bora bumped shoulders as they came together in the middle of the road, but it was a separate contact moments later than sparked the huge pile-up right across the road.

As it happened, the sprint was being launched ahead, with Molano and Gaviria proving too ambitious in going from such range, while Merlier overcame his gearing issue to comfortably come through and take a deserved victory – a repeat of his feat on the opening day here 12 months ago.

© Tim de Waele/Velo Collection via Getty Images

Merlier pulls on the red jersey as the first overall leader of the race

UAE Tour - Stage 1

• Dates 19 Feb
• Race Length 141 kms
• Start Al Dhafra
• Finish Liwa
• Race Category Elite Men