Tirreno-Adriatico - Stage 5 » Castellalto › Castelfidardo, 205km Paris-Nice - Stage 8 » Le Plan-du-Var › Levens, 92.7km

Egan Bernal put in an impressive performance on a brutally tough fifth stage at Tirreno-Adriatico.

The Colombian finished fifth on a soaking wet day and a relentless finishing circuit around Castelfidardo, elevating himself to fourth overall.

A day of attrition saw Bernal and Pavel Sivakov present in the lead group late on, with Sivakov coming home 12th on the stage. Filippo Ganna once again showed his power to the make the early breakaway - but as the race hit the final 65km the peloton was blown apart by Mathieu van der Poel and Alpecin-Fenix.

The young Dutchman launched a long-range solo attack, narrowly holding on to take a stage win ahead of GC leader Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates). Bernal sits 3:30 behind the Slovenian, but just 30 seconds off the podium, with two days to go.
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Dylan van Baarle

Dylan van Baarle

It feels like I’m in a good place for the Classics and I’m looking forward to those races.
Paris-Nice came to a close on Sunday with a shortened 92km final stage, which saw dramatic action from start to finish.

Dylan van Baarle was quickly on the attack as he looked to improve his GC position. The Dutchman would eventually finish sixth in an elite lead group of contenders.

There was drama behind as crashes and bad luck saw Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) lose his commanding lead, eventually finishing 15th after late time loss.

Van Baarle finished 13th overall in a character-building race for the team. Laurens De Plus was also amongst the action on the final day, making his way into a breakaway move that was eventually reeled in by a surging peloton.
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- Dylan van Baarle

"For myself, yes, I'm pretty happy but for the team, we had a disappointing start with Richie and then Tao crashing out. We didn’t expect that at all. Luckily I had the legs to try something nice in the final stages.

"I knew today’s course would suit me because the climbs weren't too long, not too steep, and I knew it would come down to power. I tried a few times but with a strong headwind it was hard to get a gap. Then I was waiting for a good moment but it didn’t really arrive, so I gave it my all in the sprint.

"It wasn’t the plan to be close on GC and try for the win but it feels like I’m in a good place for the Classics and I’m looking forward to those races."