The Grizzled Mechanic Who Saved Pogacar's Tour de France
Before Tadej Pogacar could win the Tour de France's yellow jersey, he first had to be saved by a man in blue overalls.
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Yahoo
24 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Inter Milan Pre-Season Starts Today But Truly Kicks Off On Saturday
New coach Cristian Chivu will reunite with his Inter Milan squad at Appiano Gentile today as pre-season preparations officially get underway. According to Corriere dello Sport via FCInterNews, several injured first-team stars will join the group straight away. Chivu couldn't count on five stalwarts at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. Indeed, Benjamin Pavard, Yann Bisseck, Hakan Calhanoglu, Piotr Zielinski, and Davide Frattesi were out. However, all but the latter will appear at Appiano Gentile today. Inter Milan Pre-Season Preparations Get Underway PARMA, ITALY – MAY 18: Cristian Chivu head coach of Parma calcio during the Serie A match between Parma and Napoli at Stadio Ennio Tardini on May 18, 2025 in Parma, Italy. (Photo by) Although today is the gathering, Inter's 'real' pre-season will only kick off next Saturday. Indeed, most of the squad is still on vacation after an extended season. The club's pre-season begins as usual with routine medical checks before the players return to the training pitch. Furthermore, Beppe Marotta and Chivu will hold a press conference on Monday. Then, the Nerazzurri will play three summer friendlies. Inter's first warm-up test falls on August 8 as they meet Monaco at Stade Louis II. After that, they'll take on Monza and Olympaicos.
New York Times
27 minutes ago
- New York Times
You picked the most overrated and underrated NFL teams
The Pulse Newsletter 📣 | This is The Athletic's daily sports newsletter. Sign up here to receive The Pulse directly in your inbox. Good morning! Pay homage to the Honey Badger today. Yesterday's Pulse Poll gave me exactly what I wanted: a natural enemy for Pulse readership and a team to bet on (metaphorically, of course). Let's start with the team you chose to antagonize: I don't know what I expected from this one, but it wasn't this. We gave you the top 10 teams in our latest Power Rankings and asked you to pick one as most overrated … and 34 percent of you chose the Packers, ranked No. 5. Two quick thoughts: I can see the outline of logic for the rest of our candidates above, but nothing came close to the Green Bay angst. Let's move on to our underrated teams: Hello, Denver. This was a closer vote, as you can see, but we anoint the Broncos as The Pulse's underrated dark horse. I'm sure they'll crater immediately. Allow me to cast doubt on your second-most underrated team, the Cincinnati Bengals, on vibes alone. Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase can power any offense to three touchdowns a game, but ongoing feuds with both your star pass rusher and your first-round pick scream trouble to me. A final note: Many of you wrote in pleading with us to include the Buccaneers, who just missed our arbitrary cutoff of 15 teams from those Power Rankings (they're No. 16). We've already established The Pulse as in on the Bucs. Elsewhere: The Athletic Football Show picked the player arguably facing the most pressure. Watch. Thank you, as always, for voting. Onward: Venus' big day Venus Williams won her first-round match at the Citi Open yesterday over 23-year-old Peyton Stearns, the world No. 35, in straight sets. It is an incredible achievement for the 45-year-old Williams, who hadn't won a WTA match since 2023. She's looked good in both doubles and singles now, and she hopes to compete in the U.S. Open later this summer. Also on the old-athlete circuit: Rich Hill, also 45, started last night for the Royals, his 14th team (which ties a record). Advertisement Parsons baffled by Cowboys strategy Micah Parsons is at Cowboys training camp despite an ongoing contract dispute, but was direct about his communication (or lack thereof) with the team as he seeks a new deal. Parsons, the star rusher in the final year of his rookie contract, emphasized he wants to stay a Cowboy. I also don't understand how the Cowboys operate like this. Jon Machota tried to give us some answers. Marte loses $400K in burglary Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte said burglars stole approximately $400,000 worth of items from his home last week during All-Star festivities, just before Marte played in Tuesday's All-Star Game. No one was home during the break-in, thankfully, but Marte still (understandably) seems shaken by the incident. It's the latest in a string of burglaries at the homes of pro athletes. Read more here. More news 📫 Love The Pulse? Check out our other newsletters. 📺 Soccer: Germany vs. Spain 3 p.m. ET on Fox The winner of this one faces England (big win yesterday) in the Women's Euros final this weekend. I found the story of Spain's Salma Paraluello moving, as the 21-year-old is back contributing after taking four months off in the last year to pre-emptively avoid injury. She looks smart now. Germany's Sarai Linder was not so lucky and will miss today's match with an ankle injury. 📺 MLB: Yankees at Blue Jays 7:07 p.m. ET on Prime Video Toronto is solidly in the AL East lead and yet can't top the Yanks in our latest Power Rankings. What gives? The big question hovering over Toronto is whether the team is really this good. Tonight can help prove that in the short term. Get tickets to games like these here. Perfect offseason content: How much are college football programs worth? Matt Baker ran the numbers, which are startling. Hook 'em (for billions). Andrew Marchand has a timely report and column about ESPN and the NFL being 'on the 5-yard line' on a deal for ESPN to acquire NFL Media. Read it here — we'll have more on this tomorrow. Advertisement An early fantasy football cheat sheet: Michael Salfino breaks down the best QB options to stack in your upcoming draft. Which NHL broadcasts are the best? Here's what fans think. Sean McIndoe has a super interesting story on the minor playoff rule change that altered NHL history. Brody Miller and Hugh Kellenberger made predictions for both Ryder Cup teams. The picture is a little clearer now. Ichiro is a singular figure in sports history. You can still take these four lessons from his career and apply them to your life. Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: Our story about the fan who fell into the outfield basket at Wrigley Field while trying to snag a home run ball. Most-read on the website yesterday: Our latest Transfer DealSheet. Soccer is busy.
New York Times
27 minutes ago
- New York Times
As Caitlin Clark's injuries persist, what's the Fever's outlook for WNBA's second half?
NEW YORK — Late in the first quarter against the New York Liberty, Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White and assistant coach Briann January stood on the sideline intently watching a defensive possession. A few feet away, Caitlin Clark stood with a piece of paper rolled into her right hand, watching the same sequence develop, calling out instructions to teammates. Advertisement Scenes like this have been common throughout Indiana's opening 25 games of the season. Coach Clark has often been as much of a presence as Player Clark. She has studied Indiana's sets nearly as much as she has run them. After Tuesday night's 98-84 loss at New York, Clark has missed almost as many games (12, including the Commissioner's Cup championship) as she has played (13). To put it gently, the first half of the season was uneven for the Fever. Clark has dealt with injuries to her left quad and both groins, which have caused four total sideline stints since the preseason, including an absence from last week's All-Star Game. The Fever also had to adjust to DeWanna Bonner being granted a release only nine games after she became a high-profile free-agent acquisition in Indiana. White missed multiple games for personal reasons as well. 'We've obviously hit challenges along the way, but I think the way we've responded has really shown that we really can do anything,' fourth-year guard Lexie Hull said. The Fever, who sit in the middle of the league standings, have struggled to find a rhythm. They've played only four full-strength games this season. Yes, they've been resilient, but questions persist about how long they can keep trying to bounce back. 'We've got to figure out how to maintain consistency with what we have,' White said. back at @GainbridgeFH on Thursday. — Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) July 23, 2025 Heading into the season, Indiana recognized that it would take time for its pieces to jell. White headlined a largely new coaching staff, and only five players remained from last season, when the Fever went 20-20 and stormed into the playoffs after opening with eight losses in their first nine games. Still, expectations were high. Clark's definition of success had been simple: 'A championship,' she said on media day. Advertisement The objective sounds as if it has remained the same. 'We have really high standards for ourselves,' Hull said. 'We have expectations for what the end of the postseason looks like, and that goal doesn't change.' But what has changed is just how realistic that potential outcome seems. The Fever's flashes of greatness have been brief through the first 24 regular-season games: quick blips in an otherwise topsy-turvy start. The highs were high. Clark scored 32 points, 3 shy of her career high, in a win over the Liberty on June 14. That afternoon, she hit seven 3-pointers, tying a career high, all of which came from beyond 25 feet in a virtuosic performance. Against the Minnesota Lynx on July 1, Indiana put together its most complete defensive game, holding last year's finals runner-ups to season lows in points (59) and shooting (34.9). Clark didn't play in the win, but the result still served as a reminder of what the Fever can be. 'I'm proud of them that they can see it come to fruition,' White said afterward. Yet positive stretches have often given way to lulls. Good weeks have flowed into bad ones. Indiana has won three consecutive games only once this year, and it has as many win streaks (four) as losing streaks. 'Now it's just about being consistent and doing that more times than not,' Fever wing Sophie Cunningham said. Consistency will define the Fever by season's end. White has preached that Indiana's defensive intensity is non-negotiable, whether Clark is in the lineup or not. The Fever entered the All-Star break eighth in defensive rating and are hovering around league average in a number of key defensive metrics. At times, their point-of-attack defense has been disruptive. Other times, White has called out her team's defensive discipline. 'There will always be days when we don't make shots and we're not quite in flow offensively, but I think our mentality on the defensive end has to come back strong, has to come back sharp, has to come back hungry,' White said. Advertisement Against the Liberty on Tuesday, Indiana led by 4 points at halftime but squandered its advantage and trailed by 2 points after three quarters. The Liberty then went on a 14-1 second-half run, flipping the scoreline and leading to the eventual result. 'The difference in championship-caliber teams are those two or three minutes in a ballgame,' White said, 'where you can't have those miscommunications, you can't have the breakdowns, you can't have the poor shot selection. Games and series are won and lost in those small margins.' White said the Fever's defense 'got a little soft' over that stretch. Turnovers and poor shot selection led to defensive lapses. New York, she said, pinged the basketball around the perimeter as Indiana's stout first-half defense lagged. 'Not as good,' White said when reflecting on her team's second-half defensive performance. Though White wants a more consistent effort, Indiana's second-half outlook is also murky because of Clark's uncertain status. Clark traveled to New York with the Fever, but she met with doctors Monday and Tuesday for additional opinions on her right groin injury (her prior three injuries were all to her left leg). White has repeatedly said decisions about Clark's return will be made with her long-term health in mind. 'These soft tissue injuries sometimes nag until you can actually have time to really allow them to heal in the offseason,' White said. 'So we'll just take it one day at a time.' The Fever have already used six starting lineups, only one fewer than they used all of last season. They have adapted to playing different styles depending on their personnel. With Clark, Indiana's offense relies on its high-usage scorer who can dissect defenses. But without her, the Fever rely on their pace and ball movement. Both have proven to have some success; nevertheless, identity clarity seems integral to achieving long-term success. Advertisement In New York, the Fever faced an opponent with championship expectations. The Liberty are playing up to a championship standard, especially with the return of star center Jonquel Jones, who had 18 points and nine rebounds in 22 minutes. 'That's where we gotta be, where they are,' three-time All-Star guard Kelsey Mitchell said. Yet it's unclear if this version of the Fever can get there. Cunningham said she still believes Indiana has the pieces to peak at the right time. Mitchell said that the locker room remains connected despite all the team has been through. However, the only thing that has been consistent about the Fever this year is how inconsistent they have been. 'They fight for each other every day. They play for each other every day,' White said. They've been dealt a lot of different circumstances, and they handled it with grace, with humility, and haven't felt sorry for themselves.' That all is admirable. But questions remain if such resilience will pay dividends or if their inconsistency will doom them come playoff time.
