Mark Cavendish's pursuit of the all-time Tour de France stage wins record suffered a major setback during the chaotic final moments of stage 4 at the Circuit de Nogaro speedway. His teammate, Luis Léon Sánchez of Astana-Qazaqstan, crashed in the last turn and was taken to a nearby hospital with a suspected collarbone fracture.

The eventful finish also saw Fabio Jakobsen from Soudal-QuickStep lose his chances of victory in the sprint as he crashed within the final kilometer. However, the European champion managed to get back on his bike and finish the stage, despite significant damage to his jersey and abrasions on his skin.

Sánchez, despite being placed last on the stage, faces slim chances of continuing in the Tour de France. An update on his condition is anticipated from his team, Astana-Qazaqstan, later in the evening. As for Cavendish, he crossed the finish line in fifth place, unable to secure his 35th career stage win at the Tour de France.

Caleb Ewan of Lotto-Dstny may have suffered the loss of a crucial teammate as Jacopo Guarnieri crashed along with Jakobsen. Despite the setback in Nogaro, Ewan managed to secure a close second place on the stage, narrowly behind the winner, Jasper Philipsen of Alpecin-Deceuninck.

Following the intricate finish of stage 3 that prompted a lengthy deliberation by the race jury regarding potential relegation of Philipsen for deviating from his line, the final meters of stage 4 offered a wide and straight route. However, this did not prevent riders from experiencing crashes. Søren Wærenskjold of Uno-X, while leading out teammate Alexander Kristoff, veered into Axel Zingle of Cofidis, resulting in both riders going down as the barriers were slightly bumped out.

With the commotion unfolding behind him, Philipsen remained unfazed as he glided to his second victory in a Tour de France stage in 2023. This impressive triumph was made possible by an exceptional lead-out from his teammate, Mathieu van der Poel.

"It's a nice finish but I thought it would be a bit more safe with wide roads, but the turns were also tricky, especially going full gas in the turns. Luckily the tyres were good enough and I didn’t slip away. It was a nice finish, and I just hoped everyone who crashed is OK," he said.