Ewan misses UAE Tour win by millimetres - 'It’s only promising for the next sprint stages'

AL MIRFA UNITED ARAB EMIRATES FEBRUARY 20 LR Tim Merlier of Belgium and Team Soudal QuickStep Caleb Ewan of Australia and Team Lotto Dstny and Olav Kooij of The Netherlands and Team JumboVisma sprint to win during the 5th UAE Tour 2023 Stage 1 a 151km stage from Al Dhafra Castle to Al Mirfa UAETour on February 20 2023 in Al Mirfa United Arab Emirates Photo by Dario BelingheriGetty Images
Tim Merlier (Soudal-QuickStep) and Caleb Ewan (Lotto Dstny) in the tightest of sprint finishes on stage 1 of the UAE Tour 2023 (Image credit: Getty Images Sport)

It was a long wait for Caleb Ewan after stage 1 of the UAE Tour to find out whether or not he had scooped up his first WorldTour level win in almost a year. The Lotto Dstny rider worked his way into the lead group in a crosswind strewn day and then in the sprint crossed the line alongside Tim Merlier in a finish that was ultimately so close that even the slow motion video and photo finish didn’t make it clear who had won.

The Australian initially threw his arm in the air after his quickly making ground in his dash from behind Merlier's wheel in the final metres –  ‘when in doubt claim it’ Ewan said jokingly on instagram – but the uncertainty soon grew. The pair were again alongside each other as they leaned close to the screen in the podium area when the slow motion replay was showing, straining to see who might be the victor in a race that came down to millimetres. They weren't the only ones wondering, with discussion of a potential dead heat flowing in social media and in commentary booths and Merlier's team posting on the finish line photo on Twitter with the caption 'you tell us who won'.

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Simone Giuliani
Australia Editor

Simone is a degree-qualified journalist that has accumulated decades of wide-ranging experience while working across a variety of leading media organisations. She joined Cyclingnews as a Production Editor at the start of the 2021 season and has now moved into the role of Australia Editor. Previously she worked as a freelance writer, Australian Editor at Ella CyclingTips and as a correspondent for Reuters and Bloomberg. Cycling was initially purely a leisure pursuit for Simone, who started out as a business journalist, but in 2015 her career focus also shifted to the sport.