Less than a week ago, Dylan Groenewegen sat in the middle of a road, his body language oozing disappointment as he was attended by the Tour de France doctor.
One of the fastest sprinters in the world, the Dutchman was expected to win the opening stage and seize the yellow jersey. Instead, he was caught in a crash and forced to watch Mike Teunissen claim the honor.
To add to his torment, Teunissen and Groenewegen are roommates on the Tour, meaning he had to spend the night with the yellow jersey in his room.
Photo: AFP
Groenewegen took a few days to recover, but on Friday finally put his poor start to bed with the tightest of wins in the longest stage.
He edged Australian rival Caleb Ewan and former world champion Peter Sagan of Slovakia to claim his fourth career stage win of the Tour.
After a final technical hairpin bend, the 230km stage featured a 1.6km path to the finish that gave pure sprinters a perfect opportunity to shine.
It was a tight battle between Groenewegen and Ewan, with the former averaging 74.1kph to win by just a few centimeters.
Before that intense finale, riders used Stage 7 to recover from the brutal ride on Thursday and it made for painfully boring viewing.
There was no significant movement in the overall standings. Tour rookie Giulio Ciccone kept the yellow jersey with a six-second lead over Julian Alaphilippe.
Among the favorites, Geraint Thomas remained the best-placed rider, just 49 seconds off the pace.
On the Tour’s longest day, some riders were caught napping. Nicolas Roche fell onto his machine on a long section of flat road, while Teunissen and American Tejay van Garderen hit the tarmac soon after the start, close to a road divider.
Van Garderen was attended by three of his teammates and eventually got back on his bike to finish with a bloodied face and ripped jersey, but he broke a bone in his left hand and his team later announced his withdrawal.
The top US rider in the race, van Garderen was 36th overall.
After letting another big lead slip with an error-strewn performance at the French Open on Wednesday, top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka felt like getting as far away from the courts as possible. “Just want to quit tennis right now,” Sabalenka said after wasting a lead of a set and two breaks in a 3-6, 7-5, 6-0 loss to Diana Shnaider in the women’s singles quarter-finals. “We’ll see in few days. Hopefully I’ll get back on track mentally.” Sabalenka’s wait for a first French Open title continues despite the four-time major winner leading 4-1 in the second set and being two points from victory while
BIG NAMES GONE: Zverev is the clear favorite for a maiden Grand Slam title, reaching semi-finals for the fifth time in six years and finishing second on three occasions Alexander Zverev on Tuesday breezed past Rafael Jodar to stay on course for an elusive Grand Slam title at the French Open, while Jakub Mensik halted Joao Fonseca’s scintillating run in the quarter-finals. Zverev, the highest-ranked player left in the men’s draw, put an end to Spanish teenager Jodar’s impressive Roland Garros debut, easing into the semi-finals with a 7-6, (7/3), 6-1, 6-3 win. The 29-year-old Zverev is the clear favorite for a maiden Grand Slam title. He has finished runner-up on three occasions, including at the 2024 French Open. “I want to win the matches that are ahead of
For some, Cristiano Ronaldo remains the essential spearhead for Portugal’s FIFA World Cup bid, while others believe his presence would prevent Roberto Martinez’s strong side from flourishing. The debate around the five-time Ballon d’Or winner rages on, as it did at UEFA Euro 2024 and four years ago in Qatar — yet Ronaldo endures, ready to play in a record sixth World Cup. The 41-year-old remains a global superstar despite swapping the European elite for Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr, and is the leading men’s international goalscorer with 143 strikes. With 25 of those coming in 30 games under Martinez, the coach
Taiwanese sprinter Chen Yi-cen on Friday won the silver medal in the women’s 400m final at the Asian U20 Athletics Championships in Hong Kong, with a time of 53.16 seconds. Chen, 15, was the youngest among the eight finalists, and her performance also met the qualifying standard of 53.50 seconds for the Nagoya Asian Games in Japan in September and October. Chen first made her mark at the National Games in Tainan in 2023, at the age of 13, winning the women’s 400m final in 55.55 seconds to become the youngest gold medalist in the history of the event. Meanwhile,
RSS