'He's a bit gutted' - Crash denies Sam Bennett sprint chance in Poland
The opening stage of the Tour de Pologne was one for the sprinters, but Sam Bennett missed out on the chance to contest the win when he came down in a crash in the finale. The Decathlon-AG2R rider sustained no fractures and he will hope for another opportunity later in the week.
It’s a cruel sport, but that’s hardly news. Sam Bennett has been waiting since the final day of the Giro d’Italia for the chance to sprint again, but the Irishman was denied the opportunity on stage 1 of the Tour de Pologne when he came down in a crash 1.6km from the finish in Legnica.
Though bloodied and bruised, Bennett remounted and completed the stage, and his Decathlon-AG2R squad indicated that he had not suffered any fractures in the incident.
By the time he had soft-pedalled to the bus parking on Ulica Senatorska, Bennett’s focus appeared to be on the chance missed rather than the injuries sustained.
“He’s a bit gutted,” Decathlon directeur sportif Luke Roberts told Domestique. “He was ready for it and the chance was unfortunately taken away. I think the bunch moved over and someone hit him from behind. I haven’t seen it exactly, but it’s pretty unfortunate for him. He lost quite a bit of skin, but otherwise he’s fine.”
In years past, the Tour de Pologne has been liberally bedecked with sprint finales, but the pickings in 2025 look to be altogether slimmer. Olav Kooij (Visma | Lease a Bike) powered to victory on stage 1, but he reckoned that the fast men might only have one more chance to shine on this race. Roberts didn’t disagree with that assessment.
“A race that has traditionally offered a lot to sprinters is very limited this year, and it’s one less now,” Robert said. “Stage 4 is a good chance – no guarantee, but it’s a good chance. Other than that, it’s going to be pretty tough for the sprinters.”
With Kooij expected to join Decathlon-AG2R from Visma in 2026, it’s not clear where Bennett race next season. The 2020 Tour de France green jersey winner has yet to sign a contract for next year, and a win at the Tour de Pologne would surely be a boon to any negotiations. Bennett has clocked up four wins this season and he has notched up ten Grand Tour stage victories over the years, but he hasn’t won at WorldTour level since the 2022 Vuelta a España.
“I do know he’s been showing good shape in training and he’s been feeling good,” Roberts said. “So if the fall hasn’t knocked him about too much, he’ll hopefully get another good chance this week.”
