‘It was him or me’ - Arnaud De Lie bumps shoulders with Lewis Askey in final sprint at Clásica de Almería

Everything seemed to be going to plan for Arnaud De Lie (Lotto-Intermarché) at the Clásica de Almería today, where he made his racing debut for the 2026 season. In the final metres of the hectic sprint, the Belgian fast man was battling to stay on Biniam Girmay’s wheel behind the NSN leadout train, all set to launch his first sprint of the year.

But then NSN’s Lewis Askey, after doing a final pull around a corner, pulled out of the train but stayed in the pack, seemingly trying to slot in behind Girmay. At the same time, De Lie was trying to hold position behind, and there was not enough room for both of them. De Lie bumped shoulders with the Briton, causing Askey to unclip, flail his legs and almost crash at high speed.

“NSN did a good train, but the lead out riders stayed in the field. There was [almost] an unfortunate crash in the final,” De Lie, still gasping for air, after crossing the finish line for sixth place behind winner Girmay.

“It was him or me, and I was lucky to stay on the bike.”

Believing in their sprinter, the Lotto squad put a rider early on in the rotation at the front of the peloton to control the gap to the five-rider breakaway, which was reeled in with 24 kilometres to go.

But then, chaos ensued when successive crashes over five kilometres took down riders as the speed ramped up and teams jostled for position.

Though he didn't get the result he wanted, the 23-year-old rider seemed happy about his form on his return to racing after an ankle injury.

“It was good. I had a plan and I followed the plan. The door just never opened,” he concluded.

De Lie will next line up at the Volta ao Algarve, which begins on February 18, where two sprint opportunities are expected, on stages 1 and 4.