Tim Merlier secured back-to-back stage wins at the 2026 Tour de France by winning stage eight on Saturday in a bunch sprint from Perigueux to Bergerac covering 180.4km in 3 hours, 52 minutes, and 50 seconds [1, 2, 3]. The Belgian rider recovered from being boxed in before the final corner to unleash a powerful late charge in the last 500 metres, holding off Biniam Girmay who finished second [1, 3]. Merlier said, "I needed to fight for my position all the time until the last minute. Just before the corner, I was a bit boxed in, and then they almost crashed. I thought it was over, so I gave it a try to come back off the guys who did the lead-out. I was coming with so much speed." [1] He added, "If you win one, you can win a second, and I'm happy. Three [sprint] stages, I won two - definitely my Tour de France." [1]
Stage eight saw a strong solo attack from Belgian Liam Slock, who led alone for the final 40km before being caught 1.3km from the finish line [1, 2, 3]. Dutch rider Olav Kooij took third place after having won the first sprint stage on Wednesday [1, 3].
Merlier’s win brought him within 15 points of the green jersey leader Mads Pedersen in the sprinters’ classification [1, 3]. Meanwhile, Tadej Pogačar retained the overall yellow jersey after stage eight, maintaining his lead over Jonas Vingegaard [1, 2]. Vingegaard’s sports director, Marc Reef, said, "If I throw in the towel, I would not be a good DS. We will look for every chance all the way to Paris. The gap was not that big on the Tourmalet and we believe in our plan. The Tour is still two weeks. We have a lot to fight for and the lead is only 2:40. Jonas lost it in one day and we can gain it in one day. That’s something we believe in. The Tour is not over. That [fightback] starts with a plan and belief in ourselves. Our strategy is still there and the big stages where the big differences are going to be made are still coming." [2]
Following stage eight, race organizers shortened the ninth stage from 185.5km to 155.5km due to an intense heatwave in the Correze region [1]. The shorter stage nine will test the riders under high temperatures as the race continues.
