In another finish for sprinters, Axel Laurance (Alpecin-Deceuninck) was victorious in the fifth stage of the Volta a Catalunya, after riding 167.3 kilometers between Altafulla and Viladecans, which had flat terrain at the end of the day.
The Belgian sprinter, who won his 17th victory of the season, won the duel with Dutchman Marijn van den Berg (EF Education – EasyPost) and his compatriot Bryan Coquard (Cofidis), who finished 2nd and 3rd respectively. While Venezuelan Orluis Aular (Caja Rural – Seguros RGA) had to settle for 4th place.
As for the Colombians, the best of the day was Sergio Higuita (Bora-Hansgrohe), in 26th place. Then came Einer Rubio (Movistar) 28th, Esteban Chaves (EF Education EasyPost) 38th, Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) 56th, Nairo Quintana (Movistar Team) 58th and Ivan Ramiso Sosa (Movistar Team) 64th, arrived in the lot with the same time as the winner. The rest of the beetles arrived behind.
Regarding the general classification, it was a transition stage that left no changes in the top positions. The Slovenian Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates), retained the lead of the race without setbacks.
During the day there were several attacks with Geraint Thomas (INEOS Grenadiers), Steven Kruijswijk (Visma | Lease a Bike), Jacopo Mosca (Lidl-Trek), Enzo Paleni (Groupama-FDJ), Georg Steinhauser (EF Education-EasyPost), Christopher Juul-Jensen (Jayco-AlUla) and Óscar Rodríguez (INEOS Grenadiers) as protagonists.
Behind, it was Alpecin-Deceuninck and Cofidis who controlled the breakaway within the limits. On the final climb, it was the Israel-Premier Tech men who pushed hard and caught the escapees one by one. The pace proved too high for Marijn van den Berg, who had to let go on the flanks of the climb, although he came back on the flat.
Most of the sprinters came back just in time. Rodriguez and Steinhauser battled on the final climb, but then their adventure was over. In the final part several attack attempts, but none of them had the desired effect.
In the definition the fast men fought for the victory among themselves in the streets of Viladecans. Austrian Patrick Konrad started the sprint first, but the European rider was not fast enough. In the end, Van den Berg seemed to take the win, but in the last meters Axel Laurance proved to be a bit faster. The Frenchman took his third win as a pro and his first WorldTour victory.
The 103rd edition of the Volta a Catalunya will continue this Saturday with its sixth stage, a mountainous partial with a 154.7-kilometer route between the Catalan towns of Berga and Queralt, which includes five mountain prizes and a high finish.
Volta Ciclista a Catalunya 2024 (2.UWT)
Results Stage 5 | Altafulla – Viladecans (167,3 km)
| 1 | Axel Laurance | Alpecin – Deceuninck | 3:36:05 |
| 2 | Marijn van den Berg | EF Education – EasyPost | ,, |
| 3 | Bryan Coquard | Cofidis | ,, |
| 4 | Orluis Aular | Caja Rural – Seguros RGA | ,, |
| 5 | Stephen Williams | Israel – Premier Tech | ,, |
| 6 | Patrick Konrad | Lidl – Trek | ,, |
| 7 | Dorian Godon | Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team | ,, |
| 8 | Pau Miquel | Equipo Kern Pharma | ,, |
| 9 | Fernando Barceló | Caja Rural – Seguros RGA | ,, |
| 10 | Frank van den Broek | Team dsm-firmenich PostNL | ,, |
Ranking General
| 1 | Tadej Pogačar | UAE Team Emirates | 20:54:36 |
| 2 | Mikel Landa | Soudal Quick-Step | 2:27 |
| 3 | Aleksandr Vlasov | BORA – hansgrohe | 2:55 |
| 4 | Lenny Martinez | Groupama – FDJ | 3:21 |
| 5 | Chris Harper | Team Jayco AlUla | 3:22 |
| 6 | Enric Mas | Movistar Team | 3:24 |
| 7 | Sepp Kuss | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 3:31 |
| 8 | Wout Poels | Bahrain – Victorious | ,, |
| 9 | Egan Bernal | INEOS Grenadiers | 3:50 |
| 10 | João Almeida | UAE Team Emirates | 3:52 |
Fuente: Revista mundo Ciclístico