Stage 5: Saint-Omer -> Dunkirk
Stage 5 brought the 4 Jours de Dunkerque to a close with a 179-kilometre route from Saint-Omer to Dunkirk. The stage concluded with eight laps on a local finishing circuit and was widely expected to end in a bunch sprint. Early in the day, three French riders formed the breakaway of the stage. However, the peloton kept the move firmly under control throughout the afternoon, never allowing the gap to extend beyond two minutes. As the race entered the final local laps in Dunkirk, the sprint teams gradually increased the pace at the front of the peloton. The final attackers were caught on the last lap, setting up the anticipated sprint finish.
Starting the final lap, our riders moved to the front to fight for position ahead of the fast and technical finale. In the sprint, it was Jordi Meeus who proved fastest on the day, while Niklas Märkl sprinted to a strong sixth place for the team. After five days of racing in northern France, Robbe Dhondt secured 10th place overall in the general classification.