A bit more than a year ago, Caleb Ewan was devastated to be left out of the Tour de France.
The Australian sprinter had to watch on TV after finding out at the last minute that his Mitchelton-Scott team was placing all its bets on Adam Yates and would leave Ewan at home.
A year later, Ewan on Wednesday earned his first Tour victory by edging a close sprint on Stage 11 in Toulouse.
Photo: Reuters
“I was ready for the Tour three of four years ago; I always wanted to go straight to the top races,” said Ewan, whose daughter was born just before the race started. “I’ve been held back, I finally got my chance.”
Ewan switched teams to Lotto-Soudal this season to replace veteran German sprinter Andre Greipel, and the ambitious youngster was, at last, promoted to a team leader role this summer.
However, the pressure was big on Ewan, a winner of 36 professional races, including stages at the Vuelta a Espana and Giro d’Italia.
After coming close in previous stages with three third-place finishes and a runner-up spot, he finally delivered by edging one of the peloton’s fastest men.
The 25-year-old beat fellow sprinter Dylan Groenewegen by a tire’s width and was awarded the victory after a photo finish.
Ewan perfectly timed his effort after Groenewegen surged on the left side of the road.
“It was super hectic,” said Ewan, who has now completed wins at all three Grand Tours. “I felt I should let him get a bit of a gap so I could sprint in his slipstream, and I could pass him quite quick.”
The win also made up for having to leave Australia just after the birth of his daughter, Lily. He thanked his wife for letting him go to France in such circumstances.
“She let me come here and leave my young baby in hospital,” Ewan said. “It’s the hardest thing I had to do.”
With the race heading into the Pyrenees over the next four stages, the main favorites did not take any risks and there were no significant changes in the overall standings.
Frenchman Julian Alaphillipe kept the yellow jersey, 1 minute, 12 seconds ahead of defending champion Geraint Thomas.
“I’ve prepared myself for attacks to take place, whether from the favorites or other riders who want to gain time,” Alaphilippe said.
The coming days could be crucial in determining the next champion.
Following yesterday’s two first-category climbs, Thomas — an excellent time-trial specialist — will have a chance to gain time on his rivals in the only individual race against the clock this year.
Then it will be time for the grueling ascent of the Tourmalet — the first of three finishes higher than 2,000m this year — and a final Pyrenean stage totaling more than 39km of climbing.
More than 180 years of horse racing came to an end in Singapore on Saturday, as the Singapore Turf Club hosted its final race day before its track is handed back to the Singaporean government to provide land for new homes. Under an overcast sky, the air-conditioned VIP boxes were full of enthusiasts, socialites and expats, while the grounds and betting halls below hosted mostly older-generation punters. The sun broke through for the last race, the last-ever Grand Singapore Gold Cup. The winner, South African jockey Muzi Yeni, echoed a feeling of loss shared by many on the day. “I’d
Former world No. 2 Paula Badosa has withdrawn from this week’s Wuhan Open, organizers said on Tuesday, amid a racism row over an online photograph. Tournament organizers said the Spaniard had pulled out of the WTA 1000 tournament, citing a gastrointestinal illness, hours before her first-round match against Australian Ajla Tomljanovic. News outlets including Britain’s the Telegraph earlier reported that Badosa had posted a photo on Instagram in which she appeared to imitate a Chinese face by placing chopsticks on the corners of her eyes. The photo was taken last week in a restaurant in Beijing, where she reached the semi-finals of the
PREDICTION: Last week, when Yu’s father made a wrong turn to the former champions’ parking lot, he said that his son could park there after this year With back-to-back birdies on the 18th hole, Kevin Yu fulfilled his driving range-owning dad’s prediction that he would win the Sanderson Farms Championship and become Taiwan’s third golfer to claim a US PGA Tour title. The Taoyuan-born 26-year-old, who represented Taiwan in the Olympic golf at Paris, saw off Californian Beau Hossler in a playoff at the Country Club of Jackson, Mississippi, on Sunday. Having drained a 15-foot putt to claw his way into the playoff, Yu rolled in from five feet on the first extra hole, ensuring he joined Chen Tze-chung (LA Open in 1987) and Pan Cheng-tsung (RBC
LeBron James and eldest son Bronny James claimed a piece of NBA history on Sunday after making their long-awaited first appearance alongside each other for the Los Angeles Lakers. The duo appeared together at the start of the second quarter in the Lakers’ 118-114 preseason defeat to the Phoenix Suns in Palm Desert, east of Los Angeles. While LeBron James impressed with 19 points in just 16 minutes and 20 seconds on court before sitting out the second half, Bronny found the going harder with zero points in just over 13 minutes on court. The younger James attempted just one
RSS