Paris (France) (AFP) – Jonathan Milan signed his second success in a row on the Tour of the United Arab Emirates by winning in a sprint at the end of the 5th stage, quietly for the leader Antonio Tiberi.
Published on: 02/20/2026 - 2:43 p.m.
The Italian settled the peloton in front of the Norwegian Erlend Blikra and his compatriot Matteo Malucelli even though he had not approached the last 500 meters in the best position.
“It was difficult to stay together (with his teammates) in the final. But I was still able to find the opening,” rejoiced the leader of the Lidl-Trek team who already has four successes to his credit in 2026.
Like the day before, the German team managed the race perfectly while three men escaped at the start of the stage.
The trio, composed of Silvan Dillier, Gianni Moscon and Nickolas Zukowsky, was never a threat to the peloton which took over these daring three kilometers from the line.
In the general classification, the Italian Antonio Tiberi maintained his lead over the Mexican Isaac Del Toro, on the eve of an undoubtedly decisive stage for the final victory with the arrival at the summit of Jebel Hafeet after an ascent of 10.6 km at 6.9% average gradient.
The gap separating the two men is 21 seconds which bodes well for a promising mano a mano while the other candidates for victory are more than a minute away.
Remco Evenepoel, adrift in the ascent of Jebel Mobrah during the third stage, is no longer part of it; it clocks in at over two minutes.
But the Belgian, victim of cramps on Wednesday, would like to prove with a stage success that his poor performance was only temporary.
© 2026 AFP
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