Wiebes claims Tour de France stage as Vos holds lead
Just as in the previous day's stage, the SD Worx team sprinter once again beat the overall leader by a wheel to claim her second consecutive stage victory.
"On the final straight it was a big chaos and I was really fighting for position," said Wiebes, 26.
"It's really nice to win again and it's really nice to finish it off for the girls after their hard work at the end again."
Ireland's Lara Gillespie completed the podium at the end of a stage which was thankfully much cleaner than Monday's in Angers, when several riders found themselves caught up in a mass crash.
The main victim of that crash, Dutch rider Demi Vollering, appeared apprehensive at the start in Saumur on Tuesday.
But the overall favourite for the Tour finished in the peloton in the same time as Wiebes.
Vollering sits sixth overall, 25sec behind leader Vos and 13sec behind second-placed Wiebes.
Tuesday's stage was led by Franziska Koch of Germany and Brazilian Ana Vitoria Magalhaes, after they made a break just over an hour into the day's racing.
They were caught 3km from the finish line by the SD Worx team, who catapulted Wiebes to her 16th victory this season and the 109th of her career.
"She's (Wiebes) just the best sprinter in the world, she's a phenomenon in the sprint and every time she shows it again," said veteran Vos.
"It's nice to keep the yellow on such a day. You know it's going to be tough," added the 38-year-old.
Wednesday will be the longest stage of the 2025 edition with its 165.8km run between Chasseneuil-du-Poitou/Futuroscope and Gueret, complete with a slog to the finish featuring three climbs inside the final 35km.--AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
2025 World Aquatics: USA breaks mixed 4x100m freestyle world record
THE United States set a new world record in sealing a dominant victory in the mixed 4x100m freestyle relay at the world championships on Saturday. The US team took gold in Singapore in 3min 18.48sec, beating Australia's previous leading time of 3:18.83 set in 2023. The 'neutral athletes' team from Russia finished second in 3:19.68, with France third in 3:21.35. The American team of Jack Alexy, Patrick Sammon, Kate Douglass and Torri Huske took control from the start and from then on their battle was against the clock. 'We all came out tonight wanting to get that win for Team USA and with the world record, we all knew in the back of our mind we had that ability,' said Douglass. 'I'm really happy with how it turned out.' The US topped the medal table at the start of the day and their latest success consolidated their lead heading into the final day of the championships. 'It's great to be racing with my team-mates,' said Alexy. 'The world record was in the back of our minds.' - AFP
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
Ledecky wins 800m freestyle in epic battle with McIntosh
UNITED STATES great Katie Ledecky beat Summer McIntosh in a titanic three-way battle to win a thrilling 800m freestyle world title in Singapore on Saturday. Ledecky won her seventh career gold in the event but she was challenged like never before, touching the wall in a championship-record 8min 05.62sec -- a fingertip ahead of Australia's Lani Pallister (8:05.98) and McIntosh (8:07.29). It was Canadian sensation McIntosh's first defeat of the championships and ended her bid to match Michael Phelps as the only swimmer ever to win five individual golds at a single world championships. The 18-year-old has already won three golds this week in Singapore. Ledecky, 28, had too much staying power for her younger rival, with Pallister also in gold-medal contention until the final lunge for the line. 'They pushed me all the way,' said Ledecky, a four-time Olympic champion in the event. 'I'm just really happy I could put that together. I just kept telling myself to trust my legs.' The race was billed as a potential changing of the guard, with McIntosh in red-hot form. She had also threatened Ledecky's world record earlier this year. Pallister was determined to insert her name into the conversation as well, as the Australian kept pace with Ledecky and McIntosh in a fast start. The lead changed hands several times but Ledecky, swimming between her two rivals, looked best-placed to strike for home. In the end it was the American celebrating with her country's flag on the pool deck after an epic race. 'I think I just came into tonight trying to enjoy it as much as I can,' said Ledecky. 'I don't feel like I have much to lose at this point in my career. 'I just try to enjoy it every time I get to walk out in front of a crowd like this.' - AFP
The Sun
6 hours ago
- The Sun
US swimmers respond to Phelps, Lochte criticism at world championships
THE United States preferred to do their talking in the pool on Saturday after Olympic swimming great Michael Phelps took a swipe at the team's performance at the world championships in Singapore. The US team has said that an 'overwhelming majority' of the squad were struck down by acute gastroenteritis at a pre-championships camp in Thailand. With expectations sky-high back home and Los Angeles hosting the 2028 Olympics, that triggered accusations of poor management in some quarters. Six-time Olympic gold medallist Ryan Lochte on Friday shared an image on Instagram depicting a funeral that featured a tombstone inscribed: 'In loving memory of United States Swimming.' 'They set the bar high -- until they stopped reaching for it,' the inscription says, Lochte adding the caption: 'Call it a funeral or call it a fresh start. We've got 3 years.' Phelps, who counts a stunning 23 gold among his 28 Olympic medals, shared Lochte's post, adding: 'Is this the wake-up call USA swimming needed?' In Singapore, which the US team sees as a launchpad for the home 2028 Olympics, a United States team official shut down questions about the post as double Olympic champion Bobby Finke comfortably qualified for the 1,500m freestyle final, He was fifth-fastest in 14min 45.70sec, with Germany's Florian Wellbrock quickest in 14:44.81. 'I always enjoy coming back and racing against the best in the world,' said Finke, asked about the constant noise surrounding the American swimmers. A US team featuring Friday gold medallist Kate Douglass topped the heats in the mixed 4x100m freestyle relay with a time of 3:21.48, edging out France, who were 2.73sec behind. Also in Saturday's morning heats, Torri Huske and Gretchen Walsh qualified for the 50m freestyle semi-finals 13th- and 14th-fastest respectively. Both were among the swimmers from the US squad who fell ill. 'I feel pretty good, just a little rocky maybe,' said Walsh, who won 100m butterfly gold this week despite feeling 'fragile'. 'I'm feeling almost 100 percent better. I definitely think that what I went through took something out of me,' she told AFP. Walsh said she was not aware of the excoriating posts by Phelps and Lochte. Australia's 50m Olympic silver medallist Meg Harris fired a warning as she powered into the 50m semi-finals with the fastest time in 24.32sec. Huske, who took bronze in the 100m free on Friday, clocked 24.72 and Walsh 24.79. Lilly King, a two-time former world champion, cruised into the semi-finals of the 50m breaststroke. Despite the criticism, the United States top the medals table in Singapore ahead of the conclusion of the competition on Sunday. They have five golds and 20 medals overall. Katie Ledecky will be hoping to add to that haul later Saturday when she faces off against Canadian phenomenon Summer McIntosh in the eagerly anticipated final of the 800m freestyle. - AFP
