The person who spat at Dutch cyclist Mathieu van der Poel during the E3 Saxo Classic last month has been identified and is to face a fine, local police in Ronse, where the incident occurred, announced on Tuesday.
Alone in the lead with about 30km to go, Van der Poel was spat on by a spectator, beer in hand, in the Karnemelkbeekstraat in Ronse. The incident was captured on television, which enabled the police to identify the spitter who has “admitted the facts.”
The person will have to pay a fine of up to 350 euros (US$398.29), a police officer said, adding that the case would not be taken any further.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Van der Poel went on to win the race, but has faced similar incidents.
“The people who do this would do better not to attend the races,” he said at the time. “Unfortunately, I can’t change things, but it’s a shame it should happen again because it’s already happened to me.”
During the Paris-Roubaix on Sunday last week, the leader of the Alpecin-Deceuninck team was hit in the face by a water bottle in the cobbled section of Templeuve, again when he was leading the race.
The perpetrator handed himself into the police and in a letter published yesterday in the Belgian daily Het Laatse Nieuws, he apologized to Van der Poel and racing fans, adding that he was “embarrassed for days” after the incident.
Van der Poel called the incident “unacceptable,” adding that being hit by the half-full bottle while riding at 40kph was like being hit in the face with a rock.
Additional reporting by AFP
Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke, 29, has died, the NBA team said in a statement on Tuesday, while the family of Jason Collins, the first openly gay man to play in a major US pro sports league, announced the former Grizzlies and Brooklyn Nets player had died after a battle with brain cancer. “We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of Brandon Clarke,” the Grizzlies said in a statement posted on social media. “Brandon was an outstanding teammate and an even better person whose impact on the organization and the greater Memphis community will not be forgotten.” The statement did not provide
Mathys Tel was hero and villain as Tottenham drew 1-1 at home to Leeds United on Monday — a result that leaves their English Premier League future hanging in the balance. The Frenchman broke the deadlock early in the second half to ease the tension at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but then gave away a penalty with a reckless attempted clearance. In the dying minutes, Spurs were grateful to Antonin Kinsky, who produced an astonishing save to deny the visitors a win. Tottenham are now two points clear of 18th-placed West Ham United with just two games left this season. The
Houston Astros right-hander Teng Kai-wei, the only active Taiwanese pitcher in MLB, on Sunday suffered his third loss of the season, throwing a season-high 63 pitches in his second start of the year. Teng allowed three earned runs over three innings on five hits in the Astros’ 5-0 road loss to the Cincinnati Reds. He struck out one, walked one, and hit one batter among the 15 hitters he faced, raising his earned run average to 3.12. It was the Astros’ second attempt to use the 27-year-old Taiwanese as a starter, after he had established himself as a reliable bullpen
‘DONE IT ALL’: LeBron James is now out of contract with the Lakers and would head into the off season as a free agent with uncertainty swirling around his future LeBron James on Monday said he would take time to consider his future after the Los Angeles Lakers were swept out of the NBA playoffs by the Oklahoma City Thunder in what could turn out to be the final game of his career. James, 41, delivered a typically defiant performance with 24 points and 12 rebounds, but it was not enough to prevent the Lakers from falling 115-110 as the Thunder completed a 4-0 sweep in the Western Conference semi-finals series. The four-time NBA champion is now out of contract with the Lakers and would head into the off season
RSS