Merlier wins sprint finish as Van der Poel denied epic breakaway triumph
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The Guardian
4 hours ago
- The Guardian
Tour de France Femmes: Ferrand-Prévot closes on home glory after dazzling win
Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, the Olympic mountain bike gold medallist at Paris 2024, took a commanding overall lead in the Tour de France Femmes after a spectacular lone victory at the summit of the Col de la Madeleine. With one stage remaining in the nine-day race, the 33-year-old from Reims is on the verge of ending French cycling's 40 years wait by ending the long wait for a successor to Bernard Hinault's 1985 win in the men's Tour de France. Ferrand-Prévot, unlike many of those watching at the roadside, held back the tears until after an embrace from the Tour director, Marion Rousse. 'I've realised a little girl's dream, it's a perfect day,' Ferrand-Prévot said after taking the yellow jersey. 'I have to thank the public and my family who were here at the roadside.' Her solo success on the Tour's queen stage went beyond the host country's highest expectations and crushed the hopes of the defending champion, Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney, as well as the 2023 champion, Demi Vollering, who were left behind on the long climb to the 2,000m Haute-Savoie mountain top. 'It was a big effort for over an hour, hour and a half of climbing, and I had to manage it,' Ferrand-Prévot said. 'But it's really been a team effort all week and it's as much for them as it is for me.' For a Visma-Lease a Bike team who were once again dominated by Tadej Pogacar in the men's Tour de France, it was a sweet success. With just the final stage, from Praz-sur-Arly to Châtel, remaining, Ferrand-Prévot leads the Australian climber Sarah Gigante by more than two-and-a-half minutes and Vollering by three minutes and 18 seconds. Niewiadoma-Phinney is a further half-minute behind. Ferrand-Prévot said: 'I've still got to finish the job, but one year after the Games in Paris, to win here, on this mythic climb, it's incredible.' The sense the race had been unsettled before the summit finishes was emphasised by the stop-start racing on the approach to the beyond category summit finish on the Madeleine, where the fight for the yellow jersey finally began. The pivotal moment came 12km from the summit when Gigante pulled clear of the favourites, with Pauliena Rooijakkers and Ferrand-Prévot in pursuit. Gigante, teammate to the overnight race leader, Kim Le Court, has struggled to keep pace on the descents, but her rapid climbing has compensated for that shortcoming. This time, though, Ferrand-Prévot was quick to respond to her sharp acceleration and the pair soon joined forces. The French rider also benefited from her Visma-Lease a Bike team's tactics. Marion Bunol went in the early break, waiting ahead to pace her teammate up the climb. That gave her the respite she needed, before she dropped her final companion, Niamh Fisher-Black, five kilometres from the finish. Le Court, Niewiadoma-Phinney and Vollering had little or no meaningful response so Ferrand-Prévot's climbing speed. It was a tough day for Le Court. The descending speed that had saved her overall lead on the previous stage to Chambéry let her down 24 hours later, when she raced too fast into a tight left-hand bend and somersaulted into a ditch. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion None of her rivals waited for the race leader as she got to her feet and remounted. If anything the peloton of favourites pushed on even harder as Le Court dropped almost a minute behind. However, in the valley road leading to the next climb, the Côte de Saint-Georges d'Hurtières, the peloton slowed and Le Court rejoined the main group. After that, she led the way at the foot of the Madeleine, hoping to set up Gigante. Her efforts were not in vain, but she and Gigante had not factored in Ferrand-Prévot's extended climbing powers. 'Other teams don't know what's coming,' Le Court had said of Gigante's climbing skills. But they had reckoned without Ferrand-Prévot. Now drawing huge crowds to the roadside and growing TV audiences, the fourth edition of the Tour Femmes, has built further on the success of the first three. 'I really felt something big was happening,' Rousse said. 'I had tears in my eyes. I was a little overwhelmed because women's cycling has come so far.' Rousse also revealed that Christian Prudhomme, director of the men's Tour, had said to her: 'I no longer see any difference between the two Tours de France.'
Daily Mail
8 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Marseille break silence on Mason Greenwood's future amid talk of Saudi interest in former Man United striker
Olympique de Marseille have insisted Mason Greenwood is not for sale despite growing speculation linking the former Manchester United forward with a lucrative move to Saudi Arabia. Reports in French media this week suggested several Saudi Pro League clubs had expressed interest in signing the 23-year-old, who has hit the ground running in pre-season after scoring 21 goals in Ligue 1 last term. But Marseille's sporting director Mehdi Benatia has now addressed the rumours head-on, telling 365Scores Arabia: 'Greenwood will stay with us. He is not for sale.' Benatia added: 'We want to keep him and consider him a key part of OM's project for the upcoming season.' Benatia's comments pour cold water on claims that Marseille were considering cashing in on Greenwood, who joined the French side from United last summer for a fee of £27million, with a further £3.2m in potential add-ons. United reportedly inserted a 50 per cent sell-on clause into the agreement, meaning they would stand to make a significant profit should the striker be sold — but for now, such a windfall looks unlikely. French newspaper L'Equipe previously suggested that Marseille could demand a fee in the region of €50m (£44m) if they were to sell Greenwood. Yet Benatia's firm stance suggests that Marseille remain committed to keeping their No 10, who has become a talismanic figure under head coach Roberto De Zerbi. Greenwood has been in scintillating form during pre-season, scoring six goals in friendlies, including a smart header against Sevilla on Saturday and a hat-trick against Dutch side Excelsior Maassluis last month. De Zerbi has publicly praised the ex-England international in recent months, saying in April: 'Greenwood is a natural talent, thanks to his mother and father. 'I am here to help him become more complete. When he needs a hug or a few supportive words, I will gladly give it. 'When I need to be on him to give more, I will do it. That is my job. Above all, I want to help him be remembered, in this stadium and by these fans, as one of the best to ever play at the Stade Velodrome. 'There have been so many great players here, but I think Greenwood can be remembered like that. I'm trying to help him reach that level.' Greenwood has a new strike partner this summer in Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who rejoined the club this week after spending last season with Al Qadsiah in the Saudi Pro League. Aubameyang has also spoken glowingly about Greenwood. 'He's the starboy! He's very strong, very good,' Aubameyang said of his new team-mate during his unveiling. 'In Saudi Arabia, I had a team-mate who had played with him in Spain and told me he was a phenomenon. I'm happy he's with us.' Greenwood scored 22 goals in all competitions last season, helping Marseille to a second-placed finish in Ligue 1 and a return to the Champions League. That came after he bagged 10 times in 36 appearances for Getafe during a loan spell in the 2023-24 campaign. Prior to that Greenwood had not played a game of professional football since January 2022 — a month in which he was arrested on suspicion of raping and assaulting a woman. Greenwood was subsequently charged with a number of offences which were later all dropped.
Reuters
13 hours ago
- Reuters
Ferrand-Prevot in yellow at Tour de France Femmes after stage eight win
SAVOIE, France, Aug 2 (Reuters) - France's Pauline Ferrand-Prevot (Visma–Lease a Bike) powered to victory on the mountainous stage eight of the Tour de France Femmes on Saturday, dropping her rivals before the Col de la Madeleine summit to claim the yellow jersey on the eve of the finale. The 33-year-old, who won the Paris-Roubaix Femmes in April, attacked seven kilometres from the summit to overtake Niamh Fisher-Black (Lidl–Trek) and Yara Kastelijn (Fenix–Deceuninck) before riding clear. She then crossed the line one minute 45 seconds ahead of Sarah Gigante (AG Insurance–Soudal), with Fisher‑Black in third two minutes 15 seconds behind. It was the third straight stage victory for France which capped an aggressive display from Ferrand-Prevot, who started the day 26 seconds off the general classification leader Kimberley Le Court Pienaar (AG Insurance-Soudal. Her win put her in the overall lead, with Gigante, two minutes 37 seconds adrift, the only general classification favourite still able to challenge her on the final 124.1km mountain ride from Praz-sur-Arly to Chatel. Mauritian Le Court crashed on the descent from the Col du Frene with 63km remaining, briefly trailing the peloton by about a minute before resuming her chase. She rejoined later but the effort and the relentless climbing cost her dear in the general classification. Ferrand-Prevot, Paris Olympics gold medallist in cross-country mountain biking, will take her commanding lead into Sunday's final stage, aiming to become the first Frenchwoman to win the Tour de France Femmes.
