Next setback for João Almeida after Tour de Pologne mass crash
João Almeida will not start stage 5 of the Tour de Pologne after suffering injuries in the mass crash that disrupted Thursday's fourth stage. UAE Team Emirates-XRG confirmed that the Portuguese rider has avoided fractures and will now return home to recover.
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Almeida was among several UAE Team Emirates-XRG riders caught in the large pile up with around 40 kilometres remaining on stage 4.
The crash, which happened on wet roads, brought down at least 20 riders and eventually led race organisers to neutralise the stage briefly. Juan Sebastián Molano, Benoît Cosnefroy, Jan Christen and Rune Herregodts were also among the UAE riders involved.
Molano and Cosnefroy were unable to finish the stage, while Almeida made it to the line more than 16 minutes behind stage winner Bart Lemmen.
Following further assessment overnight, UAE confirmed on Friday morning that Almeida would also leave the race.
“We are happy to report that there are no fractures, and all three guys will now head home to rest up for their races to come,” the team said ahead of stage 5.
Another setback in difficult season for Almeida
He started 2026 strongly, finishing second at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana before taking third at the Volta ao Algarve. Illness then forced him to miss Paris-Nice and continued to affect him after his return at the Volta a Catalunya.
Almeida had initially planned to make the Giro d’Italia his main objective of the season, but blood tests following his illness showed that all was not right. He initially tried to continue training before eventually stopping altogether and taking around two months away from racing.
Almeida returned at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes in June, using the race to rebuild after two months away from competition. Still short of his best form, he withdrew before stage 7 and returned home to continue his preparation for the Vuelta a España.
The Spanish Grand Tour has been a successful race for Almeida last year. He finished second overall in 2025, just 1:16 behind Jonas Vingegaard (Visma | Lease a Bike), and also won the stage finishing on the Angliru.
This year’s Vuelta will bring a different dynamic within UAE. Tadej Pogačar is set to return to the race for the first time since 2019, leading the team as he targets the only Grand Tour missing from his palmarès. His presence is also likely to shift Almeida into more of a supporting role.
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