The fifth stage of the
Tour de Pologne was again settled with a bunch sprint, as the fast men could enjoy a day ridden conservatively, where
Bahrain - Victorious took the win with
Phil Bauhaus taking a strong triumph in a finale that saw yet another mass crash.
A threatening day for the peloton with the hilly start, the breakaway that went up the road early on was dangerous with eight riders on board. Mads Würtz Schmidt (Israel - Premier Tech), Boy van Poppel (Intermarché - Wanty - Gobert Matériaux), Yevgeniy Fedorov (Astana Qazaqstan Team), Sean Quinn (EF Education-EasyPost), Shane Archbold (BORA - hansgrohe), Michal Schlegel (Caja Rural - Seguros RGA), Jakub Murias and Mateusz Grabis (Poland National Team).
Over the last 40 kilometers in the final climbs of the day there was a thinning down of the front group, with the peloton chasing with consistent pace, it forced the stronger riders to take to the front as Sean Quinn - a GC threat - and Mads Würtz Schmidt went off alone.
The peloton, almost compact, timed the chase to perfection as they reeled in the last survivors with just two kilometers to go, with a fourth bunch sprint set to happen in Rzeszów. Inside the final kilometer there was a crash very close to the front, splitting the peloton into just a few riders that could go on to fight for the stage win.
Groupama led out
Arnaud Démare, but Phil Bauhaus had Jonathan Milan doing a perfect job for him in the final meters and the German had the speed to conclude the team's work and cross the line first, just narrowly beating Démare, and
Nikias Arndt who finished third.
