Defeats in the Tour de France sprints can have different meanings for each rider. This was demonstrated by the contrasting reactions of Tim Merlier and Kaden Groves in the Laval stage.

For Tim Merlier (Soudal-QuickStep), it was a day to forget. A puncture with 12.5 km to go jeopardized his chances of victory. Although he managed to rejoin the group, the Belgian was unable to find the ideal position for the final sprint. "After the puncture, I managed to rejoin, but at the crucial moment, we couldn't get back to the front," explained a disappointed Merlier, who finished in 56th place.

Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck) was in a different mood, finishing third behind Jonathan Milan. The Australian, who replaced teammate Jasper Philipsen after his crash on stage three, sees his finish as a step in the right direction: "My legs gave out in the last 200 meters, but Milan was super strong. It's only third place, but I think it's a step forward, and I'm convinced that victory is possible."

Groves, making his debut at the Grande Boucle, is discovering how magnified everything is in the French race: "It's completely different. A sprint is always a sprint, but here the risks are greater, the crowds are bigger, and if at the Giro the finale starts 50 km from the finish, here it can start as early as 80 km. The Tour is truly on another level."