Latest news with #Eritrean
Qatar Tribune
7 hours ago
- Sport
- Qatar Tribune
Milan avoids crash to strengthen grip on Tour de France green jersey
PA Media/DPA Paris Jonathan Milan avoided a late crash in Valence to sprint to his second victory of this year's Tour de France and strengthen his grip on the green jersey while Tadej Pogacar stayed safe in yellow. Several riders went down in wet, slippery conditions entering the last kilometre of the 160km stage from Bollene, blocking the road and leaving less than a dozen riders to contest the sprint. From their number, it was no surprise to see the in-form Milan hold off a late charge from Jordi Meeus. It was a victory Milan needed in the fight for the points leader's green jersey as his advantage over Pogacar at the start of the day was 11 points, and given this could prove to be the last chance for the sprinters with the Montmartre climb added to Sunday's final stage into Paris. The late crash meant that general classification times were neutralized for those in the front group, allowing Pogacar to roll home still four minutes and 15 seconds clear of Jonas Vingegaard going into two big stages in the Alps. Biniam Girmay was among the sprinters caught in the crash and the Eritrean looked in some discomfort after receiving treatment. Tim Merlier did not go down but was held up, unable to contest the sprint. 'I'm really happy, I'm without words,' said Milan, who credited his Lidl-Trek team-mates after getting through Tuesday's stage to Mont Ventoux. 'I didn't survive alone, it's always with the help of team-mates. Without all of this, I already would not be here ... 'They also helped me when I was dropped on the first climb and then on the second climb did a really good pace. 'It was a difficult final because of the weather and the roundabouts, I was a bit scared but they helped me and this is really fantastic, it's really a team victory.' In a Tour which has offered relatively few sprint opportunities, the fast men knew they needed to take this one, and particularly Milan, given the criticism directed at his team after they failed to fight for the points at Tuesday's intermediate sprint before Ventoux. Milan was dropped by the peloton on the first of two categorised climbs on this stage which had left open the possibility of a breakaway prospering here. But he recovered with the help of team-mate Quinn Simmons, who then put in another big turn to help reel in a four-man group up the road. The last of those escapees, Jonas Abrahamsen, was reeled in 4km from the finish but by then rain was falling heavily, creating the treacherous conditions that led to the crash which effectively blocked the road under the flamme rouge. Milan's points lead ballooned to 72 points, but he will still need to target the intermediate sprints in the mountains to be sure of holding off Pogacar, who has a narrow opportunity to become the first man to win all three major classifications at a Tour since Eddy Merckx in 1969.
Observer
10 hours ago
- Climate
- Observer
Milan wins crash-marred sprint at Tour de France
Italy's Jonathan Milan won a crash-marred finale to stage 17 of the Tour de France in lashing rain on Wednesday, extending his lead in the sprint points race. Overall leader Tadej Pogacar and his closest rival Jonas Vingegaard (4min 15sec behind) finished safely despite a mass fall 800m from the finish line at Valence at the foot of the Alps. On the rain-slick roads at Valence once one rider had fallen his interminable slide across the tarmac sent riders flying like skittles leaving only 10 to contest the sprint. This was a second stage win for Milan, who won Italy's first stage since 2019 on stage eight. The 24-year-old Lidl Trek rider now has 312 points, and is in a powerful position to win the battle for the green jersey in Paris as Pogacar is second at 240 with only two possible sprints left at 50pts each. As the remaining 164 riders embarked from the sleepy Provence village of Bollene, the collective will of the peloton made for a slow approach of the Alps. Billed as a sprinters stage on an unusually mild (22C) day the riders were also spared the 50kph winds that had been forecast. But the rain deprived the stage a full bunch sprint due to the horrid fall. The three massive climbs culminating with the ascent to the 2304m altitude Col de la Loze on stage 18 will sort the wheat from the chaff on Thursday's Queen stage. While Friday's hellishly designed five mountains of madness on stage 19 sound the final call for any pretender to knock Pogacar off his high perch. Unless that is the three ascents of the cobbled roads to the Sacre Coeur Basilica in old Montmartre descend into chaos on Sunday. Milan prevailed in a 10-man sprint after the peloton was held up behind a massive crash with just one kilometre to go as riders went down on slippery roads in a rainy finish in southeastern France. Eritrean Biniam Girmay was attended to by race doctors. 'I'm really happy and without words, I have to say. After surviving (the ascent to the Mont Ventoux on Tuesday) I didn't survive alone,' said Milan, who holds the green jersey for the points classification. 'I survived all this with the help of my teammates. I really have to practice this because without all this I would not be here. Maybe I would have already dropped in one of the climbs (of the day). 'So, with the help every single day of my teammates, we achieved this result. Today was a really tough stage ... We controlled it from the beginning, of course, with the help of some other teams. But they helped me also when I dropped. In the first climb, in the second one, they really did a good pace.' Frenchmen Quentin Pacher and Mathieu Burgaudeau as well as Jonas Abrahamsen of Norway and Italian Vincenzo Albanese broke away early but stood little chance against the collective power of the sprinters' teams. With the peloton breathing down their necks, Abrahamsen went solo with 11km remaining, only to be reined in 4.3km from the line. Thursday's 18th stage is a brutal mountain trek between Vif and the Col de la Loze, one of the most feared ascents in the Tour de France. — Agencies
Irish Independent
12 hours ago
- Climate
- Irish Independent
Ben Healy remains ninth after Jonathan Milan sprints to stage win to strengthen grip on Tour de France green jersey
Several riders went down in wet, slippery conditions entering the last kilometre of the 160km stage from Bollene, blocking the road and leaving less than a dozen riders to contest the sprint - and from their number it was no surprise to see the in-form Milan hold off a late charge from Jordi Meeus. It was a victory Milan needed in the fight for the points leader's green jersey as his advantage over Pogacar at the start of the day was 11 points, and given this could prove to be the last chance for the sprinters with the Montmartre climb added to Sunday's final stage into Paris. The late crash meant that general classification times were neutralised for those in the front group, allowing Pogacar to roll home still four minutes and 15 seconds clear of Jonas Vingegaard going into two big stages in the Alps. Ireland's Ben Healy remains ninth overall after crossing the line with the main bunch Biniam Girmay was among the sprinters caught in the crash and the Eritrean looked in some discomfort after receiving treatment. Tim Merlier did not go down but was held up, unable to contest the sprint. "I'm really happy, I'm without words," said Milan, who credited his Lidl-Trek team-mates after getting through Tuesday's stage to Mont Ventoux. "I didn't survive alone, it's always with the help of team-mates. Without all of this, I already would not be here... "They also helped me when I was dropped on the first climb and then on the second climb did a really good pace. "It was a difficult final because of the weather and the roundabouts, I was a bit scared but they helped me and this is really fantastic, it's really a team victory." In a Tour which has offered relatively few sprint opportunities, the fast men knew they needed to take this one, and particularly Milan, given the criticism directed at his team after they failed to fight for the points at Tuesday's intermediate sprint before Ventoux. Milan was dropped by the peloton on the first of two categorised climbs on this stage which had left open the possibility of a breakaway prospering here, but he recovered with the help of team-mate Quinn Simmons, who then put in another big turn to help reel in a four-man group up the road. The last of those escapees, Jonas Abrahamsen, was reeled in four kilometres from the finish but by then rain was falling heavily, creating the treacherous conditions that led to the crash which effectively blocked the road under the flamme rouge. Milan's points lead ballooned to 72 points, but he will still need to target the intermediate sprints in the mountains to be sure of holding off Pogacar, who has a narrow opportunity to become the first man to win all three major classifications at a Tour since Eddy Merckx in 1969.
Perth Now
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Perth Now
Milan wins Tour's 17th stage, Pogacar retains yellow
Italian Jonathan Milan has claimed his second victory in this year's Tour de France when he won a crash-disrupted sprint at the end of the 17th stage. Milan prevailed in a 10-man dash to the line after the peloton was held up behind a massive crash with just one kilometre to go as riders went down on slippery roads in rainy south eastern France on Wednesday. The spill involved Milan's rival sprinter Tim Merlier and others under the "flamme rouge" — the triangular red banner over the road signalling the final kilometer. Eritrean rider Biniam Girmay came off worse and was attended to by race doctors. "The last 25 kilometres were really, really, fast," said Merlier, who finished 25th, more than a minute behind Milan. "I think I did a mistake. I took one roundabout on the wrong side and I lost a lot of positions. And then I knew I needed to move up. The moment I wanted to move up, I crashed." Slovenian Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) crossed the finish line safely to retain the overall leader's yellow jersey. "I'm really happy and without words, I have to say. After surviving (the ascent to the Mont Ventoux on Tuesday) I didn't survive alone," said a relieved Milan, who holds the green jersey for the points classification. "I survived all this with the help of my teammates. I really have to practice this because without all this I would not be here. Maybe I would have already dropped in one of the climbs (of the day). "So, with the help every single day of my teammates, we achieved this result. Today was a really tough stage... We controlled it from the beginning, of course, with the help of some other teams. But they helped me also when I dropped. In the first climb, in the second one, they really did a good pace." Frenchmen Quentin Pacher and Mathieu Burgaudeau, as well as Jonas Abrahamsen of Norway and Italian Vincenzo Albanese, broke away early but stood little chance against the collective power of the sprinters' teams. With the peloton breathing down their necks, Abrahamsen went solo with 11km remaining, only to be reined in 4.3km from the line. Milan was the strongest in the reduced sprint, edging out Jordi Meeus of Belgium and Denmark's Tobias Lund Andresen, who were second and third respectively. Adelaide racer Jarrad Drizners was clocked as first Australian home in 13th place, helping his Lotto teammate Arnaud de Lie to fourth on the day after joining a massed group in the rain-soaked sprint finish. Queenslander Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck) was placed 20th. Ben O'Connor, in 12th place, 31:08 seconds behind Pogacar, remains the only Australian among the top 25 General Classification riders. Norwegian cyclist Tobias Halland Johannessen remains eighth overall after returning to the race despite collapsing and needing oxygen after going down at the finish line on Tuesday's 16th stage on Mont Ventoux. Thursday's 18th stage is a brutal mountain trek between Vif and the Col de la Loze, one of the most feared ascents in the Tour de France.
RTÉ News
13 hours ago
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Ben Healy stays in general classification top ten as Jonathan Milan wins 17th stage of Tour de France
Ben Healy remains inside the top ten of the general classification at the Tour de France as Italian Jonathan Milan claimed his second victory in this year's competition when he won a crash-disrupted sprint in the 17th stage on Wednesday. Milan prevailed in a 10-man sprint after the peloton was held up behind a massive crash with just one kilometre to go as riders went down on slippery roads in a rainy finish in southeastern France. Eritrean Biniam Girmay was attended to by race doctors. Tadej Pogacar crossed the finish line safely to retain the overall leader's yellow jersey. Irish rider Healy (EF Education - EasyPost) is ninth overall, 17:52 down on Pogacar after finishing 37th on the stage. Healy is also 11th, seventh and fourth in the points, mountain and youth classifications respectively. His performance on Wednesday follows yesterday's stage when he n arrowly missed out on a second stage win of this year's Tour. Frenchmen Quentin Pacher and Mathieu Burgaudeau as well as Jonas Abrahamsen of Norway and Italian Vincenzo Albanese broke away early but stood little chance against the collective power of the sprinters' teams. With the peloton breathing down their necks, Abrahamsen went solo with 11km remaining, only to be reined in 4.3km from the line. Milan was the strongest in the reduced sprint, edging out Jordi Meeus of Belgium and Denmark's Tobias Lund Andresen, who were second and third respectively. Thursday's 18th stage is a brutal mountain trek between Vif and the Col de la Loze, one of the most feared ascents in the Tour de France.
