Stage 5 of the Tour de France features a flat, 177.4 km route in length from Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne to Saint-Vulbas. The riders will ascend approximately 1,050 meters over the length of the day, and should be ripe for a bunch sprint on the finish. Teams will be looking to support their sprinters, and expect a lot of tactical group rider in the final 20 km of the stage.
Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) is widely considered the top favorite, having won four stages and the green jersey as top of the points classification at the 2023 edition of the Tour de France. Philipsen has also already secured 4 wins in 2024 and has 6 total Tour de France stage wins.
Eyes should also be on the Dutch rider Dylan Groenewegen (Team Jayco AlUla), as well as the young Arnaud De Lie (Lotto Dstny), who at 22 years old, is making his debut at the 2024 Tour de France and is considered one of the top sprinters to watch. Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) appears to be in good form as well, and the former world champion is expected to be a strong contender in the sprints.
Biniam Girmay, coming off a victory on Stage 3 of the Tour de France should also be taken extremely seriously as contender for stage victory, alongside Wout van Aert (Team Visma-Lease a Bike), Sam Bennett (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team), Arnaud Démare (Arkéa - B&B Hotels), Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain - Victorious), and Alexander Kristoff (Uno-X Mobility).
Finally, people will also be watching the performance of Mark Cavendish (Astana Qazaqstan Team). With 34 Tour de France stage wins to his name, Cavendish remains a formidable sprinter, but as one of the older riders on the tour, who has also overcome a significantly injury not long ago his form is less predictable. Cavendish was hampered by a crash approaching the finish on Stage 3, but the evergreen and well-loved sprinter will hope to capture victory on Stage 4.
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