The curtain closed today on the Tour de France debut for Kelland O'Brien (Jayco-AlUla), as the Australian tried to make the time cut on a fourth day of riding but did not make the time limit into Foix.
The 28-year-old completed the hilly 181.9km route from Carcassone regardless of the outcome, finishing 46 minutes, 2 seconds behind stage winner Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek). With the broom wagon following in Foix, Tour cameras caught the moment he crossed the finish as a 'real fighter'.
"I just hoped that maybe somehow I could find something to make it but in the end it wasn't enough so I just have to apologise to my team and wish them all the best," the disappointed rider told Australian broadcaster SBS.
The start on the first full day in France for the Tour was marked by temperatures reaching 38°C and as there was no shortage of sunshine or climbing, a repetition of ascents with four of them categorised. It was a day for the breakaway, as a group of 10 emerged from an eager group of 34 who stole away in the opening 10km.
Only one Jayco-AlUla rider made the first bunch, Michael Matthews, who was able to lead the chasers at the end for 11th place on the stage. Meanwhile, O'Brien's ride became one of plain survival and not getting into a team car along the way.
On stage 2, O'Brien was involved in an eight-rider pileup just 6km into that contest. He managed to remount and ride, but finished more than 17 minutes behind winner Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), only four riders taking longer. The next mountain day saw him off the pace by 38 minutes as he was the next-to-last rider to cross the finish in Les Angles.
On Tuesday, O'Brien could not keep pace with a trio of Tudor Pro riders who tagged on to the back of the race, and once across the final climb and still outside Foix, the time limit had been reached at 15% from the winning time, or 37:37 back from Pedersen. O'Brien still pedalled on for another eight-plus minutes to reach the finish line.
"I crashed on the first road stage and my body is just not right after the crash, my back is in a lot of pain and I just had no power to the legs," O'Brien said. "It's a shame."
A gold medalist in Team Pursuit at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, O'Brien was the third rider to leave the Tour across the first four days, the first to finish outside the time limit.
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Kelland O’Brien finished outside the time limit, but that didn’t stop him from fighting on and completing the stage. A real fighter 💪💜Kelland O’Brien a terminé hors délais mais cela ne l’a pas empêché de se battre et de terminer l’étape. Un battant 💪💜#TDF2026 pic.twitter.com/ABEEnmvIutJuly 7, 2026
