
Grovelling apology by drunk man who lobbed water bottle at van der Poel
A Belgian man threw a plastic bottle at cyclist Mathieu van der Poel during the Paris-Roubaix race.
The man has apologised after he admitted to having "drunk a lot" and called his actions "stupid and dangerous."
Van der Poel, despite being hit in the face, went on to win the race.
French prosecutors opened an investigation into the incident, and the UCI condemned the "unacceptable behaviour."
Van der Poel and his team are calling for legal action and stricter measures against dangerous fan behaviour.

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The Sun
3 hours ago
- The Sun
Putin's secret daughter, 22, ‘working in anti-war art gallery in Paris' after ‘ditching tyrant's name'
VLADIMIR Putin's alleged secret daughter is reportedly working at two Parisian art galleries that showcase anti-war exhibitions. Elizaveta Krivonogikh, 22 – also known as Luiza Rozova and now Elizaveta Rudnova – is said to be rubbing shoulders with Russian dissidents and Ukrainian artists in the French capital. 6 6 6 6 Reports say she is working at L Galerie in Belleville and Espace Albatros in Montreuil, despite being the daughter of a regime responsible for the war they oppose. Both galleries are said to be known for exhibiting anti-war art, according to outlet Meduza, citing a Russian artist. She also reportedly dropped the Putin-linked name and adopted one tied to Oleg Rudnov, a late Vlad ally - in an apparent attempt to mask her ties to the Kremlin tyrant. Her role as gallery manager includes helping organise shows and make videos, and it has seemed to spark fury among exiled Russians and Ukrainians. Artist Nastya Rodionova, who fled Russia in 2022, said she couldn't stay silent. In a Facebook post, she wrote: 'It's important to say that I believe in the presumption of innocence and that children are not responsible for the crimes of their parents. 'But with the war reaching its heights it is inadmissible to allow a person who comes from a family of beneficiaries of [Putin's] regime to come into confrontation with the victims of that regime. 'We need to know who we are working with and decide whether we are ready for that. My personal answer in this case is no.' Dmitry Dolinsky, director of L Association that controls Studio Albatros and L Galerie, defended Rudnova's role. He told The Times: 'She looks like Putin but so do 100,000 other people. I haven't seen a DNA test.' Some insiders back her, calling her a 'cultured person' and 'excellent worker'. But Rodionova hit back, warning that victims of the war shouldn't be forced to share space with anyone tied to the regime – alleged daughter or not. Rudnova's mother, Svetlana Krivonogikh, was sanctioned by the UK in 2023 and linked to Putin's inner circle by independent Russian media. She reportedly owns property worth $100million and was outed as Putin's former mistress by the Proekt investigative team. Elizaveta vanished from Russian social media shortly before the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. She once flaunted a lavish lifestyle on Instagram, posting photos in designer clothes, sipping champagne, and DJing under the name Luiza Rozova. Ukrainian TV later claimed she was living in Paris with a passport under the name Rudnova, allegedly ditching the patronymic Vladimirovna, which would confirm her father's name as Vladimir. 6 6 Born in March 2003, Elizaveta has never publicly confirmed a link to the Russian tyrant. The Kremlin has never confirmed her existence either. But the timing of her birth, her resemblance to Putin, and her mother's major financial rise have fuelled years of speculation. Kremlin critics say she is part of the hidden empire Putin has built for his inner circle and family. Officially, Putin only acknowledges two daughters, Maria and Katerina, from his marriage to Lyudmila Putina, whom he divorced in 2014. But it's long been rumoured he has more children — including two sons with former gymnast Alina Kabaeva. Who are Vladimir Putin's daughters? VLADIMIR Putin is known for keeping his personal and family life very private, but some details about the tyrant's children have surfaced over the years. Maria Vorontsova (née Putin, born April 28, 1985): His eldest, 39, leads government-funded programs personally overseen by Putin, which have received billions from the Kremlin for genetic research. She is the first of two daughters of Putin and his ex-wife, Lyudmila Putina. Maria is said to be an expert in rare genetic diseases in children, and also dwarfism, according to reports. She was married to Dutch businessman Jorrit Faassen. In 2013, the couple were living in a penthouse in Voorschoten, the Netherlands, but the following year, Dutch residents called for her to be expelled following the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 by pro-Russian rebels in Ukraine. The pair are believed to have moved the Moscow the following year. In March 2022, it was reported that the couple had split after the war in Ukraine crushed Maria's dreams of opening a money-spinning clinic for wealthy foreigners in Russia Katerina Tikhonova (née Putin, born August 31, 1986): Also daughter of Putin and Lyudmila, 38-year-old Katerina is a tech boss whose work supports the Russian government and defence industry. She started as a "rock'n'roll" dancer before moving into the world of artificial intelligence. In 2013, his daughter Katerina married Kirill Shamalov, whose father, Nikolai, is a longtime friend of the president. Nikolai Shamalov is a shareholder in Bank Rossiya, described by US officials as the Russian elite's personal bank. They were married in a secret ceremony at the Igor ski resort just north of St Petersburg. It was reported at the time that the pair rode into the ceremony on a sleigh pulled by three white horses. All the guests invited were sworn to secrecy, and the Kremlin has never confirmed that the wedding took place. "I have a private life in which I do not permit interference," Putin once said. "It must be respected." The couple had corporate holdings worth around $2 billion, according to Reuters, mainly from their large stake in Sibur Holding, a major gas and petrochemical company Kirill bought from another long-time friend of Putin, Gennady Timchenko. Kirill also bought off Timchenko's luxury villa in the seaside resort of Biarritz, southern France, estimated to be worth some $3.7m. In March 2022, the house was taken over by pro-Ukraine activists, in response to Russia's brutal invasion. But Katerina and Kirill divorced in January 2018, with Putin's former son in law rumoured to have been romantically involved with London -based Russian socialite Zhanna Volkova. After the split, Kirill was said to be forced to give up his stocks in Sibur, and he lost almost half his wealth. Their divorce settlement hasn't been disclosed but likely runs into the millions. Despite that, Kirill is still worth an estimated $800 million. Putin was reported to be "quietly grooming" Katerina to be his successor. Vlad is also rumoured to have "hidden" children, though he has never confirmed these reports. Elizaveta Rozova (aka Luiza Rozova): Elizaveta, also known as Luiza Rozova, 21, is the rumoured love child from Putin's alleged affair with a former cleaner. The daughter of Svetlana Krivonogikh, who later became a millionaire, is now a fashion designer and DJ. She often shared details from her lavish life on Instagram, until suddenly taking down the page in the wake of the Ukraine war. Speculation also surrounds his supposed secret family with Alina Kabaeva, a former rhythmic gymnast once known as "the most flexible woman in Russia". Officials have denied that he has kids with Alina, but it is reported that she is in hiding in Switzerland, avoiding any possible sanctions in the wake of the Ukraine war. A petition demanding she is thrown out by the Swiss authorities has garnered 75,000 signatures, demanding that "it's time you reunite Eva Braun with her Führer". Alina retired from gymnastics and took a strange career turn to become a Russian MP. The former athlete - dubbed "Russia's First Mistress" - the Duma, the Russian parliament in 2007, representing her alleged lover's United Russia party but left years later to pick up a lucrative job running a media company, despite having no previous experience. In April, Alina's name and picture was dramatically stripped from the website of the media empire she controlled.


Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Moment heroic bystanders step in to detain 'antisemitic' thug who attacked Rabbi at café in wealthy Paris suburb
Shocking footage has captured the moment heroic bystanders stepped into detain a man who attacked a French Rabbi at a café in a wealthy Paris suburb. Elie Lummel was sitting at a café in the Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine on Friday when he sustained a 'really violent blow to the head' with a chair. 'I found myself on the ground,' he said. 'I immediately felt blood flowing and then I saw people running after this person who had attacked me and I congratulated them. 'I congratulated them because it's wonderful to have people who had the courage to ensure that the person was arrested and really, well done.' Footage posted on X/ Twitter captured the aftermaths of the attack showing three male passersby detaining the suspect and dragging him through the streets of Paris by the scruff of his neck. In a second clip, a police officer is seen arrested the man after removing his striped outer layer. 'As soon as I heard "arrest him, arrest him", I understood that it was an assault,' Mr Lummel said. The suspect was held for questioning at the Neuilly-sur-Seine police station and underwent a psychiatric examination that required his hospitalisation, the prosecutor's office in Nanterre said. According to German-language identity documents found in his possession, the 28-year-old man was born in the city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip. The prosecutor's office in Nanterre confirmed it had opened an investigation into the attack for violence aggravated by the fact that it was committed on religious grounds. 'Yes, well, for me, it's profiling,' Mr Lummel said. 'Here, clearly, it's not a rabbi, it's an identifiable Jew 'Unfortunately, given my beard and my kippah, well, I suspected that was probably why, and it's such a shame.' This is the second time in two weeks that the French Rabbi has been the victim of an assault. Mr Lummel revealed he was also attacked in the town of Deauville in Normandy last week when he was punched in the stomach by an unknown assailant. It comes as five Jewish institutions, including synagogues, a restaurant and the Shoah Memorial, were vandalised with emerald green paint last week. France has seen a marked rise in hate crimes. Last year, police recorded an 11 per cent rise in racist, xenophobic or antireligious crimes, according to official data published in March. It should be noted that the figures did not include a breakdown by attacks on different religions. Addressing the rise in hate crimes, Mr Lummel said: 'Listen, I know someone well the other day who found themselves in a café with someone throwing a Mein Kampf in their face. 'I thought, well, people feel they can, not everyone, thank God. 'There's a vast majority of people who are clear in their minds. Even if they don't share the same opinions, they respect each other. 'The problem here is that some don't share the same opinions; that's their right, but we no longer respect each other. And then, on the other hand, it becomes a real problem.' Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said on X that he was disgusted by these 'despicable acts targeting the Jewish community'. Responding to the attack on Mr Lummel, he tweeted: 'I condemn in the strongest terms the anti-Semitic attack that targeted a rabbi in Neuilly today. 'I want to tell our Jewish compatriots that we stand with them. 'The perpetrator, who had no business being in France, must be severely punished and removed.' Mr Retailleau also acknowledged the 'composure and courage' of the heroic men who made the arrest possible. 'Attacking a person because of their faith is shameful,' he added. 'The increase in anti-religious acts requires everyone's mobilisation.' 'This act sickens us,' former Prime Minister Gabriel Attal wrote on X regarding Friday's incident involving Lemmel. 'Thanks to the municipal police officers who were able to immediately arrest the attacker. 'Antisemitism, like all forms of hatred, is a deadly poison for our society. 'We will always fight it,' he added.


Daily Mirror
5 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Boy, 12, slipped in puddle before falling off cliff to his death, inquest told
Chinese tourist Zhihan Zhao, 12, tragically slipped in a puddle and fell to his death at the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland, a witness told an inquest A 12-year-old boy slipped in a puddle and lost his balance by the edge of a cliff before he plunged to his death, an inquest has heard. French tourist Marion Tourgon described the moment young Zhihan Zhao accidentally died at the Cliffs of Moher in western Ireland, on July 23, 2024. The 12-year-old had set out on a walk with his mum, Xianhong Huang, and friends on the Cliffs of Moher trail but the stroll turned fatal at around 1.45pm. The Chinese nationals had only arrived to Ireland 12 days before the tragic incident, and were visiting one of the country's most popular attractions. The mum said her son was walking ahead of her on the trail when she lost sight of him. She told how they started walking from the Nagle's car park in Liscannor, and said: "My son walked very fast and was ahead of us by 50 metres. As there was only one path I thought we would meet him along the way. When I didn't I walked to the visitor centre and I checked the visitor centre." When she couldn't find him the mum walked back along the path then reported her boy missing. Speaking through an interpreter at the inquest in Kildare, Huang cried and asked: "What exactly caused Zhihan to fall from the Cliffs?" Tourgon told the inquest she had been at the edge of the cliffs at 1.45pm with her husband and two children taking a selfie, the Irish Mirror reports. The French tourist said she saw a young Asian boy come into her eyeline while they were taking the picture and recalled what she saw next. She said: "I saw him slipping in the puddle that appears in the photo that my husband sent to the police. His right foot slipped into the puddle with him trying to stop himself from falling with his left foot but his left foot ended up in the air. "It was very quick - he found himself in an awkward position with his left foot in a void over the cliff and his right knee on the edge of the cliff. His right knee eventually fell into the void over the cliff and he was trying to grasp the grass with his hands to pull himself up. He didn't shout and there was no noise." Tourgon said she alerted the emergency services by phone and added that "it is only the few of us who saw him falling". Heartbroken Huang asked "did he slip?", and Insp Helen Costello replied: "It appears from the witness that he slipped into the void having stumbled in the puddle." Police officer Colm Collins said he received a call that day at 2pm to attend the Cliffs of Moher after a male was seen falling off. He added that the Irish Coastguard had spotted a body floating in the water at the bottom of the cliffs. Collins said a lifeboat was sent but the craft was not able to access the site where the body was spotted due to the sea conditions. Zhihan's body was recovered by a fisherman five days later around 10am on July 28. O'Dea said the post mortem found that Zhihan died from multiple traumatic injuries consistent with a fall from a height and said her verdict was an "accidental death". She said: "It is clear from evidence we heard that Zhihan slipped off the Cliffs rather than any other way. His death would have been very quick - instantaneous." O'Dea told Ms Huang: "I can't imagine how upsetting this is for you" and the two embraced as Ms Huang left the coroner's court in Kilrush. She added: "The pain must be immeasurable for you all."