Things are going from bad to worse for Team Cofidis sprinter Bryan Coquard at this Tour de France.
The beleaguered Frenchman broke his finger snatching a feedbag bloated with water bottles on Thursday’s stage up to Hautacam.
Coquard was then forced to drop out of the early breakaway for an awful-looking damage assessment from race medics before he spent hours being chased by the “broom wagon.”
“I took the bag and I was immediately in a lot of pain,” Coquard told reporters waiting for him at the top of the HC summit. “When I looked at my hand, I saw that my finger was twisted.
“When I stopped with the doctors, I didn’t know what was happening. I made the decision to set off again, but it was a long ordeal,” Coquard said Thursday.
“I had to do 90 kilometers on my own.”
Coquard and his devastated digit crossed the line DFL, more than 44 minutes back on stage-destroyer Tadej Pogačar.
He was just five minutes in front of the time cut.
“The hardest part was on the descents,” Coquard said. “I couldn’t brake with my right hand, so I had to use only the rear brake.”
#TDF2025 | Bryan Coquard termine l’étape avec une suspicion de fracture !
❓ Le coureur Cofidis, qui doit se marier une semaine après la fin du Tour, n’est pas sûr de reprendre la route. pic.twitter.com/DnkzCHG5Zf
— francetvsport (@francetvsport) July 17, 2025
Cofidis seeks fast fix for Coquard
Taking a heavily loaded musette on the fly must be one of the most underappreciated skills of the Tour de France.
Riders snatch cloth sacks weighed down with gels and bottles from team staff while they speed through crowded feed zones.
Team Cofidis said Thursday night it was working on a quick fix for Coquard’s fractured finger.
“Bryan will be fitted with a splint, and an orthopedist will travel to find a solution to adapt his position on the bike during the time trial,” Cofidis wrote Thursday in a media statement.
Fortunately for them, the 33-year-old won’t need the brakes for Friday’s mountain time trial up to Peyragudes.
UPDATE: 18/07/2025 – 1400 CET: Tough times for Coquard indeed. Team Cofidis confirmed Friday the sprinter would ride the mountain TT and then leave the race due to the nature of his injury.
Stolen bikes > social media storm > fractured finger
The Tour de France has not been a smooth ride for Coquard and Team Cofidis.
Eleven of Cofidis’ Look bikes worth some $150,000 were stolen and then recovered in the opening weekend of the race.
No sooner had Cofidis got its bikes back than Coquard was hit with a yellow card when he collided with Jasper Philipsen on stage 3 into Dunkerque.
The resulting crash put the Belgian speedster out of the race and led to Coquard being subjected to a huge social media backlash.
In fact, the Coquard-bashing proved so brutal that Cofidis even threatened legal action against the haters.
Macron: ‘I’m crossing my fingers for you’
One small consolation for Coquard in his cursed Tour de France?
His endeavors were recognized by Emmanuel Macron at the finish line Thursday. The French president had parachuted to the Pyrénées for a VIP appearance at Le Tour.
“At least you’re smiling. Bravo, you’re courageous,” Macron said to Coquard. “I’m crossing my fingers for you – no bad play on words intended!”
Taxi for Emmanuel.
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