​July 5: Stage 2 – Team Visma | Lease a Bike’s Jonas Vingegaard wore the Yellow jersey as the Tour de France got underway for Stage 2. The scene opened with the Danish rider in front, signaling his status as the race leader and a key contender as riders prepared to navigate the day’s route.
Stage 5 of the 2026 Tour de France delivered an electrifying sprint finish after riders roared from Lannemezan to Pau, a total distance of 98.36 miles on largely flat terrain. Dutch sprinter Olav Kooij emerged victorious, powering across the Pau finish line to claim the day’s stage win while enduring the heat that marked the day’s conditions.
Even though Stage 5 was the first truly flat stage of this year’s race, the peloton still climbed about 1,600 meters, a meaningful amount of elevation given the scorching temperatures. The main obstacle for the day was the Côte de Baleix, a Category 3 climb that, while challenging, proved more friendly to sprinters than the mountain stages that lie ahead.
After cresting Baleix, riders plunged into a fast descent that carried the race for the final 20 kilometers, setting the stage for a tense finale in Pau. For much of the day, French rider Baptiste Velstroffer appeared to be steering the stage from the front, riding solo and maintaining his advantage for a large portion of the route.
Yet as the finish drew closer, the competition evolved into a strategic duel among the top sprinters. Olav Kooij timed his sprint to perfection, delivering the decisive move that earned him his first Tour de France stage victory.
In the finish line photos, Kooij of the Decathlon CMA CGM Team is seen crossing the line to win Stage 5 of the 113th edition of the Tour de France, a 158-kilometer stretch from Lannemezan to Pau in the southwest of France, on July 8, 2026.
Final results for Stage 5, a 158.3-kilometer course from Lannemezan to Pau, were posted on the Tour de France website on Wednesday, July 8. The top results were:
– 1st: Olav Kooij (Decathlon CMA CGM Team) – 3h 29′ 07″
– 2nd: Max Kanter (XDS Astana Team) – same time
– 3rd: Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step) – same time
– 4th: Huub Artz (Lotto Intermarche) – same time
– 5th: Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech) – same time
– 6th: Biniam Girmay (NSN Cycling Team) – same time
– 7th: Mads Pedersen (LIDL-TREK) – same time
– 8th: Milan Fretin (COFIDIS) – same time
– 9th: Anthony Turgis (TOTALENERGIES) – same time
– 10th: Soren Waerenskjold (Uno-X Mobility) – same time
Cumulative results showed Torstein Træen (UNO-X | Mobility) leading the general classification, with Mads Pedersen (LIDL-TREK) atop the points standings. Alex Baudin (EF Education | Easypost) held the mountains classification, Mathias Vacek (LIDL-TREK) led the young rider standings, and LIDL-TREK carried the lead in the team classification with yellow team numbers. The race continued to unfold through July, with riders set to tackle the coming stages in the 2026 Tour de France. Coverage and updates for Stage 5 were provided in real time, with results and times corroborated by the official Tour de France website. The general classification remained dynamic as riders prepared for the challenges to come in the remainder of the race.