Medical reports & withdrawals Tour Down Under 2026 stage 5 - Kangaroo causes crash and takes several riders out of the race
Cycling
As is often the case in a stage race of this intensity, the 2026 Tour Down Under will no doubt see a number of riders forced to abandon due to crashes, illness, and other racing incidents. Keep track of all incidents and withdrawals throughout the race right here!
Prologue
Nothing to note.
Stage 1
Jardi Christiaan van der Lee, Oliver Stockwell, Pietro Mattio and Michael Leonard were involved in an early crash on the stage. Max van der Meulen and Marius Mayrhofer also crashed during the stage and were forced to abandon, with the latter being diagnosed with fractures to his right collarbone, shoulder blad and ribs.
Tudor has written about Mayrhofer: “Marius will return to Europe in the coming days, where he will begin his rehabilitation, starting with physiotherapy. (Mayrhofer:) Obviously not the start I wanted for 2026, but I’m keeping my head up and looking positively to the future. It’s January, and the season is still long".
Stage 2
Lennert van Eetvelt and Jonas Rutsch of Intermarché - Lotto were both involved in a crash.
Stage 3
Lennert van Eetvelt and Jonas Rutsch both failed to start the stage after the injuries they have sustained on stage 2.
In addition there was a crash in the final kilometers that involved Liam Walsh, Adam Yates, Ivo Oliveira, James Knox, Casper van Uden, Jefferson Alxander Cepeda, Andreas Kron and Anders Skaarseth.
Stage 4
UAE Team Emirates - XRG has lost both Jhonatan Narváez, second in the overall classification at the start of the day, and Vegard Stake Laengen, in a crashes during the fifth day of racing. The team issued a statement on their conditions.
"Unfortunately Jhonatan Narváez and Vegard Stake Laengen were both involved in separate crashes on Stage 4 of the Tour Down Under. Narváez was taken to hospital for precautionary spinal and neurological assessment. He has sustained several stable thoracic vertebrae compression fractures, that will not require surgery at this stage. He is currently stable and will be kept in hospital for further observation.
"Laengen was also involved in a later incident and taken to hospital for assessment. He has a suspected rib injury but is stable, and will be monitored further over the coming days."
The stage, much because of the crashes and the severe heat, saw many riders abandon during the stage. Groupama also lost two men in Rémi Cavagna and Kevin Geniets, NSN lost two men in Corbin Strong and Jake Stewart; Antoine l'Hote, Danny van Poppel, Liam Walsh and Jardi van der Lee also withdrew from the race.
Stage 5
Michael Gogl did not start todat's stage, whilst the list of withdrawals was significant. Mikkel Bjerg and Menno Huising notably abandoned after crashing into a kangaroo.
Amongst the riders who did not finish the stage were Titouan Fontaine, Juan Sebastián Molano, Alberto Dainese, Casper van Uden, Stan Fredheim, Lucas Stevenson, Albert Torres, Max Walker and Maikel Zijlaard.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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leedorney06-11-2026 - Just my opinionleedorney06-11-2026
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