Tour de France: Merlier burns Milan in the festival of falls. Philipsen KO, broken collarbone

Daniela Cotto Tim Merlier emerges from the chaos. The Belgian, 32 years old from Soudal Quick-Step, outwits Jonathan Milan , beaten in the sprint by a hair's breadth in the third stage of the Tour de France. 178 km from Valenciennes to Dunkirk . Too bad for the Italian who consoles himself with the green jersey of the points classification. It took the photo finish to confirm the success of the European champion. Third, the German Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain Victorious). Another difficult stage in this Tour, full of traps and pitfalls. An exciting show but also a bit dramatic due to the falls that were not lacking yesterday either. This time - after Filippo Ganna's exit in the first stage forced to retire due to a concussion - the one to leave his feathers was Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck), the Yellow Jersey of the first day, winner in Lille. The sprinter fractured his right collarbone: he will be transferred to the hospital in Herentals where he will soon undergo surgery. . In the final, Jordi Meeus (Red Bull-Bora hansgrohe) and Davide Ballerini (XDS Astana) also fell in two separate crashes. The standings do not change. In the lead, wearing the Yellow Jersey, there is still Mathieu Van der Poel, the teammate and adventure companion of the unfortunate Philipsen. And it was Van der Poel who raised the safety alarm days ago. "Extending the group to 23 teams is a mistake", explained the Dutch star . But his observation - which days later proved pertinent - did not find support from the race management. Yesterday, however, there was bad mood in the group. And it was Biniam Girmay, Eritrean sprinter of Intermarché-Wanty, sixth in the third stage and shocked by the falls, who expressed it: "We went through hell. I'm happy to have finished the stage on my bike. Every time I heard accidents around me, my heart went up to 300 beats. I really feel sorry for the guys, especially Philipsen. It wasn't a nice show. At one point, I almost stopped pedaling, because it was too hot." In the general classification behind the Alpecin-Deceuninck standard-bearer, the situation remained unchanged with Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates XRG) in second place, four seconds behind, and Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), third, six seconds behind.

The fourth stage, 174km from Amiens Metropole to Rouen, is scheduled for Tuesday, with a series of short climbs in the final 50km and is suitable for riders suited to the 'classics'. Van der Poel, still hungry and will seek glory again.