Latest news with #Coquard
Qatar Tribune
7 days ago
- Sport
- Qatar Tribune
Philipsen doesn't blame Coquard for heavy crash at Tour de France
Toulouse: Belgian sprint star Jasper Philipsen said he doesn't blame Bryan Coquard for his heavy crash at the Tour de France. 'It was just a racing incident,' he said during an online news conference on Tuesday. 'I know what it's like to be criticized and labelled the 'bad guy.' In this case, Coquard was singled out, but there was really nothing he could've done differently.' During the third stage, Philipsen crashed at 61 kilometres per hour in an intermediate sprint when he collided with Frenchman Coquard. He suffered a displaced collarbone fracture and at least one broken rib. The 10-time Tour stage winner, who claimed victory on the opening stage in Lille, had briefly worn the yellow jersey but now faces a long road to recovery. 'Given the circumstances, things are moving in the right direction. My wounds have healed, and that shows the body was in top condition - it bounces back faster,' he said. 'Winning the first stage definitely softens the blow - and no one can take the win or that yellow jersey away from me. But I had big ambitions and was in great shape. That's the brutal side of this sport, but it's part of the deal.' The jury of the International Cycling Union (UCI) penalized Coquard for the crash. (DPA)
NBC Sports
08-07-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Pogačar claims 100th career win, beating Van der Poel in sprint during Tour de France Stage 4
Defending champion Tadej Pogačar secured the 100th professional victory of his stellar career in typically flamboyant style, beating Mathieu Van der Poel in a dash to the line to win the hilly fourth stage of the Tour de France on Tuesday. Van der Poel was the better sprinter of the two at the end of Sunday's second stage and looked set to clinch a second win in this year's race when he attacked about 200 meters from out and led. But the defending Tour champion somehow found another gear to surge past him at the line, then pumped his fists in celebration. The 26-year-old Slovenian star wore a cap with 100 written on it when he spoke after the stage. His long list of wins includes 18 stage wins at the Tour de France, the world road race, a multitude of one-day classics and other stage wins at races like the Giro d'Italia, the Paris-Nice and Critérium du Dauphiné. 'It was an amazing finale, a classic stage, the end was even more explosive than we thought,' he said. 'I'm very happy to have won the 100th victory (overall) of my career, here on the Tour de France wearing the world champion's jersey.' Pogačar and Van der Poel have exactly the same overall time of 16 hours, 46 minutes after four stages, and count one stage win each, but Van der Poel kept the yellow jersey because of better finishing positions in the other two stages. 'I would liked to have won but Tadej was the strongest today. I am glad to keep the yellow jersey, but tomorrow will be hard,' Van der Poel said. 'I tried to launch my sprint but I just didn't have the legs.' The 174-kilometer stage suited allrounders, starting from Amiens and ending with five consecutive small climbs to the Normandy city of Rouen. The first of the climbs — Côte Jacques Anquetil — bore the name of a five-time Tour champion. The Frenchman dominated cycling in the 1960s, when he also won the Giro d'Italia twice and the Spanish Vuelta. The peloton's pace picked up strongly heading into the last two climbs, with speeds reaching 60 kph (37 mph). Pogačar attacked on the last climb up Rampe Saint-Hilaire and initially dropped archrival Jonas Vingegaard, but the two-time Tour winner responded well and caught up. As the frontrunners turned for home, Van der Poel was right behind and then launched a trademark attack, like he did to win Stage 2 on Monday by outsprinting Pogačar. But this time roles were reversed as Pogačar claimed the 18th stage win of his Tour career. Vingegaard finished third. Riders enjoyed dry weather conditions after rain on Sunday and during Monday's crash-marred third stage — where Belgian cyclist Jasper Philipsen, the Stage 1 winner, retired from the race after breaking a collarbone in a heavy crash. He had successful surgery on Monday night. Yellow card for Coquard French rider Bryan Coquard was shown a yellow card by the race jury for causing Philipsen's fall, meaning the Cofidis team rider will be excluded altogether if he gets another yellow. The sanction came despite Coquard not being at fault for the crash — Coquard was himself knocked off balance by another rider — and apologizing to Philipsen and his team. 'It's an unjustified penalty, Bryan didn't make any mistake, it's an unfortunate racing incident,' Cofidis team manager Cédric Vasseur said. 'Otherwise we give yellow cards to riders involved in all the crashes accidentally, we give out 25 each stage and all go home after four days.' Wednesday's stage is quick Stage 5 is a 33-kilometer (20.5-mile) time trial around the Normandy city of Caen, and the overall standings could be shaken up a bit. This year's race is held entirely in France, with no stages held abroad, and ends on July 27 in Paris.
The Guardian
08-07-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Tour de France 2025: stage four from Amiens to Rouen
Update: Date: 2025-07-08T13:53:33.000Z Title: 70km to go: Content: Tour updates from the 173km stage to Rouen Stage by stage guide | Email John your thoughts John Brewin Tue 8 Jul 2025 14.53 BST First published on Tue 8 Jul 2025 11.00 BST 2.53pm BST 14:53 A descent splits the peloton, and soon enough they will take that turn into crosswinds. They are heading north, and with the Education Easypost team hoping Asgreen can land a win but with Ben Healy and Nelson Powless to use, too. 2.41pm BST 14:41 80km to go: 'Hi John. We are sitting baking in the sun waiting for the tour just outside Les Andelys. Atmosphere is gentle and there was no fighting over the crap from the Caravan (they were going so fast I got hit by a lump of Brie and have lovely bruise on my thigh!!) More regular updates please, we've no idea what's going on as all the radios around us are in very fast French. Kate and Steve xx' The truth, Kate and Steve, is that this is, like Monday, without much combat, building up to the big bangs that come around from 49km to go.' The talk is of a crosswind at 64km to go. 2.38pm BST 14:38 85km to go: Roland Marshall gets in touch: 'Hello Mister Brewin, I felt Coquard was very unlucky to get a yellow card for his part in the Philipsen crash, or rather to be the only one to be sanctioned thus. Rex was equally if not more culpable and yet got off scot-free. We haven't heard a peep out of him, whereas (a visibly distressed) Coquard had the good grace to show remorse (after having summersaulted off his bike a little earlier, no less) for what even Alpecin-Deceuninck have accepted as an unlucky accident. Cycling's yellow cards look set to become the equivalent of football's VAR/.' The gap is still at two minutes. 2.29pm BST 14:29 88km to go: Mike Gresley gets in touch: 'Hi John – I see you've already dropped the gag once, but how about some love for the 2005 Supergrass album 'Road to Rouen'. A hugely under-appreciated album from a band that should be recognised as one of the greats. In my humble opinion at least.' Saw them live once, at Lansdowne Road, supporting Oasis in 2000. They got blown away by the wind. Not for me, and Oasis weren't any better. My one time seeing them. Updated at 2.31pm BST 2.27pm BST 14:27 90km to go: Education Easy Post, Asgreen's team, is sat up the front here, the team of Jonathan Vaughters. You used to know them as Garmin. Ben Healy is their hope for today. 2.23pm BST 14:23 100km to go: Into breezy, woody territory they head, the gap dropping below two minutes. It's around 50km to go that the climbing truly begins and after that an intermediate sprint. On the TNT coverage, the excellent Jonathan Harris-Bass is regaling us with tales of Josephine Baker, and Charles the Bald, son of Charlemagne. Carlton Kirby – he of the Kirbygasm – is showing some impressive knowledge of Marvin Gaye's lost weekend in Ostend. Having been myself to Ostend, Marvin must have very down in the dumps. 2.09pm BST 14:09 105 km to go: Simon Thomas gets in touch: 'Hi John, 'Miguel Induráin (Spain) also won three consecutive Tours and is at present the only man to win five Tours in a row (1991-95)'. In one of his first Tours (86 I think), his dad turned up halfway through the stage and told him to abandon as he was needed at home to get the harvest in.' Updated at 2.32pm BST 2.05pm BST 14:05 110km to go: No prix de combativité handed out on Monday. That suggests what we thought, not much happened beyond the crashes. Not much combat here today but we have a long way to go. 1.59pm BST 13:59 115 km to go: The gap remains at two minutes, in full control of the Alpecin team. Remember, though, there's plenty of action in the last 50 – four categorised climbs in the last 50 clicks. 1.44pm BST 13:44 125km to go: The four men and true ahead of the pack: Kasper Asgreen (EF Education-EasyPost), Lenny Martinez (Bahrain-Victorious), Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno-X Mobility) and Thomas Gachignard (Team TotalEnergies). 1.34pm BST 13:34 130km to go: A reminder of the GC standings, which could be very different by the end of today. 1. Mathieu van der Poel (NED) Alpecin - Deceuninck 12:55:37 2. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates - XRG +4 3. Jonas Vingegaard (DEN) Team Visma - Lease a Bike +6 4. Kévin Vauquelin (FRA) Arkéa - B&B Hotels +10 5. Matteo Jorgenson (USA) Team Visma - Lease a Bike ' 6. Enric Mas (ESP) Movistar Team ' 7. Joe Blackmore (GBR) Israel - Premier Tech +41 8. Tobias Johannessen (NOR) Uno-X Mobility ' 9. Ben O'Connor (AUS) Team Jayco AlUla ' 10. Emanuel Buchmann (GER) Cofidis +49 1.24pm BST 13:24 140 km to go: David Kemp gets in touch: 'Miguel Indurain (Spain) also won three consecutive Tours and is at present the only man to win five Tours in a row (1991-95).' The article below, from 2001, did say that. Froome is the only rider to three in a row since if we're avoiding a certain American podcaster, who probably still thinks he did seven in a row. But any memories of Big Mig are happy ones. His was a golden era. 1.14pm BST 13:14 145 km to go: Alpecin, the team of Mathieu van der Poel, are leading the peloton through le campagne. The bucket hat appears on trend for those at the roadside. Updated at 2.04pm BST 1.06pm BST 13:06 150 km to go: Seems the chasing pack is happy to keep the breakaway at two minutes, and they will pick them up later. 1.01pm BST 13:01 155km to go: Heartwarming story from Reuters on Monday: Eleven bicycles belonging to Cofidis, stolen overnight before the second stage of the Tour de France, have been recovered, the team's general manager Cedric Vasseur said on Monday following the third stage of the race. 'I had Christian Prudhomme (the Tour's director) on the phone during the stage. He was with the prefect to tell us that the bikes had been found in the afternoon', Vasseur told France TV after the conclusion of the third stage. The team had earlier reported that five of the 11 bikes had been recovered. 'Some of the staff combed the area and managed to get their hands on five bicycles, which had been thrown away by the criminals in undergrowth near the hotel', the team said in a press release. The race is going full gas, almost 50km per hour. We are in Macron country here, in the sense that Manu comes from here. Asgreen catches up with the breakaway and they welcome him into their four-man brotherhood. 12.53pm BST 12:53 160 km to go: Van der Poel takes a comfort break as the peloton deigns to the race leader and sits up. Asgreen is giving everything up the hill as he chases that trio of escapees. Huw Morgan gets in touch: 'Just been to Amiens to watch the depart. Always a strange experience 'watching' cycling live. We drove an hour and 10 minutes for our 10 month old baby to basically gawp at a 150 young men on their bikes. Wout and Pogacar stopped right in front of us so we feel lucky. My wife's sense from watching them all at the start was that Jonas looks good and Pogacar looks good. We expect a Royal rumble in Rouen.' Let's hope Mrs Morgan is right. 12.48pm BST 12:48 165 km to go: They leave Amiens behind, the city of Jules Verne, where Federico Fellini made Clowns, having crossed the Somme. Not that the peloton is thinking of such deep culture as Kasper Asgreen, a Classic winner, sets off to join a breakaway that's already go almost two minutes on the pack. No panic just yet, long way to go. 12.40pm BST 12:40 173 km to go: And we have two breakers in the wind, Lenny Martinez and Jonas Abrahamsen, are those taking it up. The word on the radio is that the wind is high. Will we be seeing echelons already? Thomas Gachingnard goes in chase. None of these are GC contenders so the peloton is relaxed enough. There's plenty of battles waiting up the road. Updated at 12.43pm BST 12.36pm BST 12:36 Nick Wayne on Bryan Coquard, culpable, if unluckily, in the exit of Philipsen: 'Out of interest, what about these yellow cards? Was it considered that he didn't merit one? If it was mentioned, I missed it. Not that he deserved it as it seemed accidental.' Coquard: 'Obviously, it wasn't my intention to cause a crash; I didn't want to take any risks. I was clearly thrown off balance, I almost lost my shoe. Even if it wasn't intentional, I want to apologize to Philipsen and Alpecin-Deceuninck. Even if I'm not a bad guy, it's not pleasant.' Alpecin co-manager Phillip Roodhoft: 'Jasper is the victim of something he's totally not involved in, that's clear. To be honest, the two others who collided, I think it's not about blaming. It's just a stupid crash. Things can happen, and the consequences for us as a team, but mainly for Jasper, are very bad, but what can you say? Bad things happen sometimes.' And yet, Coquard is on a yellow. 12.31pm BST 12:31 Jeremy Boyce is in touch: 'As you say, different profile today. With 2 flat stages and a tt to come, but the mountains literally and metaphorically looming, it's maybe a day for the gc teams and contenders to show themselves and put some pressure on their rivals? Will the Vismas have a go, or are they already running scared of UAE/Pogacar ? Or keeping their cards close/powder dry ?' 12.30pm BST 12:30 James Irwin gets in touch: 'Love your football work, both written and on the Football Weekly pod. (Thanks, James, really appreciated). Thought I would say Bonjour from Gournay-en-Bray, about 60km into today's stage of the Tour. On holiday with my family on a campsite about two hours away and we are big cycling fans so decided we had to come along. Plenty of atmosphere in this village for the race. Should be a good ending to the stage today once it reaches Côte Jacques Anquetil. Will enjoy reading your live updates while we sit here for the next few hours. Cheers, James Irwin (with wife Tracey and daughter Charlotte, 13.' Enjoy, team. 12.28pm BST 12:28 Jacques Anquetil, a Rouen native and five-time Tour winner, is remembered with a monument on the Côte Jacques Anquetil climb, which today's route includes. The legend was profiled here in these pages in 2001: Jacques Anquetil (France) 1961, 1962, 1963 Master Jacques came of Norman farming stock, and was a superlative time-trialist whose strength against the clock made him the first man to win five Tours. Famous as a man who liked to live well - champagne, cigars, oysters - he raced up to 230 times a year and made no bones about the fact that in order to do so it was necessary to take drugs. Died of stomach cancer in 1987. Only Chris Froome has won three Tour de France in succession since as we're not counting you know who. Updated at 1.22pm BST 12.24pm BST 12:24 The départ fictif is in session in the city of Amiens, and the road to Rouen begins. Now they know how Joan of Arc felt…the streets are full. The Tour de France has visited Rouen 18 times since 1957, and it's the 14th time for Amiens, though the first since 1977. That year, a finish in Rouen saw Dutchman Fedor den Hertog take the stage, the yellow jersey eventually taken by Bernard Thévenet, a two-time winner with a mixed reputation. Rouen hosted a 2012 stage, won by sprinter supreme Andre Greipel, the GC winner that year was…Bradley Wiggins…yeah, Le Tour is Le Tour. 11.09am BST 11:09 Here's Monday's stage report from Jeremy Whittle. The Alpecin-Deceuninck rider had been contesting the intermediate sprint at Isbergues when Coquard moved to the right and touched shoulders with another rider, before swerving across into the Belgian's path, causing him to crash. 'I'm not a bad guy,' a visibly distressed Coquard said at the finish. 'I apologise to Alpecin, even if I didn't mean to do anything. I almost lost my shoe and there was nothing I could do.' 11.00am BST 11:00 Bonjour, tout le monde. Le Tour is Le Tour as we say every year. The casualties pile high, with Jasper Philipsen joining the list yesterday and Remco Evenepoel on the deck, but back up soon as they sped into Dunkirk. These flat stages are often where the pain is sharpest, the speed they rattle along at. Today, still in northern France, will be a bit different, with a Classic-style configuration, with lots of climbs before in the last third, the tough gets going, with repeated nasty climbs. One for the breakaway clubs, and hard work for the team captains, a day of rouleurs and puncheurs. And most probably Tadej Pogacar. Per William Fotheringham's pre-Tour guide. A welter of little hills in the finale including the Rampe Saint-Hilaire, a 750m 'wall' in the city centre, 5km from the finish; there will be huge stress for all the contenders trying to get in place for these. Evocatively, one of the late hills is the Côte de Bonsecours, where Jean Robic staged a final-day heist to win the 1947 Tour, but in the Pogacar era there's not much chance of a repeat.
The Guardian
08-07-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Tour de France 2025: stage four from Amiens to Rouen
Update: Date: 2025-07-08T10:09:58.000Z Title: Here's Monday's stage report from Jeremy Whittle. Content: The Alpecin-Deceuninck rider had been contesting the intermediate sprint at Isbergues when Coquard moved to the right and touched shoulders with another rider, before swerving across into the Belgian's path, causing him to crash. 'I'm not a bad guy,' a visibly distressed Coquard said at the finish. 'I apologise to Alpecin, even if I didn't mean to do anything. I almost lost my shoe and there was nothing I could do.' Update: Date: 2025-07-08T10:00:39.000Z Title: Preamble Content: Bonjour, tout le monde. Le Tour is Le Tour as we say every year. The casualties pile high, with Jasper Philipsen joining the list yesterday and Remco Evenepoel on the deck, but back up soon as they sped into Dunkirk. These flat stages are often where the pain is sharpest, the speed they rattle along at. Today, still in northern France, will be a bit different, with a Classic-style configuration, with lots of climbs before in the last third, the tough gets going, with repeated nasty climbs. One for the breakaway clubs, and hard work for the team captains, a day of rouleurs and puncheurs. And most probably Tadej Pogacar. Per William Fotheringham's pre-Tour guide. A welter of little hills in the finale including the Rampe Saint-Hilaire, a 750m 'wall' in the city centre, 5km from the finish; there will be huge stress for all the contenders trying to get in place for these. Evocatively, one of the late hills is the Côte de Bonsecours, where Jean Robic staged a final-day heist to win the 1947 Tour, but in the Pogacar era there's not much chance of a repeat.
France 24
07-07-2025
- Sport
- France 24
High-speed fall forces Philipsen out of Tour de France
Philipsen and the other fast men were contesting an intermediate sprint 60km from the Dunkirk finish-line of stage three when other riders swerved in front of him during a 70 kph dash. He collided with Bryan Coquard and fell. The fall ripped the green best sprinter's jersey from Philipsen's back as he slid at speed along the road. "Displaced fracture of the right collarbone, surgery will definitely be required," Philipsen's team Alpecin said in a statement. "At least one broken rib, possibly two... We wish Jasper all the best and a speedy recovery." The Belgian's teammates initially stopped to help him, but were soon told by the Alpecin team to continue on their way as they realised the extent of the 27-year-old's injuries. Coquard apologised at the finish, but stewards gave him and Belgian Edward Theuns yellow cards for "irregular sprinting". Italian Davide Ballerini and Dutchman Danny van Poppel also received yellow cards for the same offence in the chaotic final sprint in Dunkirk. The four riders, who were also fined 500 Swiss francs (535 euros, $627), are the first to receive yellow cards in the Tour de France. Under the newly-introduced system they will be thrown off the race if they receive a second yellow. Philipsen won the 2023 green jersey as best sprinter on that edition of the Tour, and has 10 career victories in the race. He was among the favourites to win the points classification again this year, but his withdrawal leaves Italian Jonathan Milan in the green jersey. The third stage was eventually won by Belgium's Tim Merlier in a photo finish ahead of Milan.
