DT_20190713

D22 SPORTS
Saturday, 13 July 2019
Daily Tribune
GERAINT Thomas
shuts down his
doubters by climbing
the leaderboard in
Stage 6 of Tour de
France. AFP
McIlroy
on prowl
I think they were pretty
generous in terms of the
course set-up because they
have never been here before
LONDON, United Kingdom — Matt
Kuchar and Edoardo Molinari were
among a four-way tie for the lead on eight
under par on a low scoring first day of
the Scottish Open while Rory McIlroy
remained in contention four shots back.
Molinari, who is hoping to qualify for
next week’s Open Championship where
his brother Francesco defends the title,
won the Scottish Open back in 2010 and
continued his fine form after a top-10
finish at last week’s Irish Open.
Kuchar and Molinari hit two eagles
each to card rounds of 63 alongside
France’s Romain Wattel and Italy’s Nino
Bertasio.
McIlroy was less clinical in his first
outing since the US Open, but the world
number three still recorded six birdies
for a round of four under par.
“I think they were pretty generous in
terms of the course set-up because they
have never been here before,” McIlroy
said.
“The rain softened the greens and
any links course we go to where there
is not much wind people are going to
rip it apart.”
Andy Sullivan, Jamie Donaldson,
Kalle Samooja, Thomas Aiken, Lee
Slattery and Erik van Rooyen made
up a group of seven just one shot off
the lead.
Former Open champion Henrik
Stenson and Ian Poulter were among
the six-strong chasing pack on six
under.
AFP
CHUN Youngin fires
a 64 to join Alena
Sharp on top of
the LPGA Marathon
Classic standings. AFP
I didn’t know I shot 64
HEART OF A CHAMPION
No doubting Thomas
It’s one of those climbs where you really have to be
patient
PARIS, France — Defending Tour de France champion Geraint
Thomas defied his doubters while Belgian Dylan Teuns won Stage
6 and his breakaway partner in Giulio Ciccone snatched the yellow
jersey by just a few seconds on an iconic mountain stage.
Teuns won the tough mountain stage to Planche des Belles
Filles when he and Ciccone crossed the summit finish line as sole
survivors of a mass breakaway.
Behind them, Thomas dispelled skepticism over his form.
This was the Tour’s first foray into the mountains. It was a
stage that defending champion Thomas described as “the big
day.” He was expected to drop time, instead he showed strong
form by beating all his main overall title rivals.
For Teuns, this was a prestige win. He enters a
storied history of the Planche des Belles Filles finish.
Meanwhile, Ciccone goes down as the 269th yellow jersey
in its 100-year history.
“When it came down to the two of us, we stayed calm.
We talked about it,” said Teuns, hinting that the pair did
a deal for a win-win instead of risking it all by not
collaborating and getting caught by the big guns.
Ciccone was less relaxed about his feat.
“It’s just unbelievable,” said the Italian after
taking the overall lead from Frenchman Julian
Alaphilippe by just six seconds.
Alaphilippe put in a heroic defense of his
lead, but missed out due to the bonus seconds
over the final two summits that prompted the
young Italian to edge him.
“It feels strange, to have the yellow jersey
on my back feels so strange,” said Ciccone.
“I wanted to win the stage for the team
NOAH Lyles vows to pour it all in the men’s 100-meter event of the Diamond League.
WASHINGTON — South Korean teen rookie
Chun Youngin and Canada’s Alena Sharp both
fired a seven-under par 64 to share the lead after
the opening round of the LPGA Marathon Classic
Thursday.
Chun, a 19-year-old who has missed eight cuts
in 11 starts this year, fired the low round of her
LPGA career, a bogey-free effort to stun herself by
topping the leaderboard at Highland Meadows
in Sylvania, Ohio.
“I didn’t know I shot 64,” Chun said.
“The funniest thing is that I finished par on
18 and then I saw the leaderboard and there’s a
7-under and I was like, ‘Who is that?’ I asked
my dad. ‘I think I shot 6, right?’ He said,
but I never believed it would be possible to take the lead,” said the
24-year-old, who rides for the same Trek-Segafredo team as Richie
Porte.
The stage ended as a battle not only for the stage and the overall
lead but for the psychological control of the race with Thomas gaining
an edge.
Chris Froome won the first finish on the mountain in 2012 to
confirm his potential before he went on to win the 2013 Tour -- and
Thomas must have sensed something special.
The Welshman gave food for thought to those who called him a
one-hit wonder after his 2018 win, who raised eyebrows when he lost
a few seconds on a climb at Epernay earlier in the week and who
had tipped Ineos teammate Egan Bernal.
“I don’t listen to tips,” said Thomas.
“I felt pretty good. I thought it would be more of a solid day.”
“I was feeling good but I was unsure. I thought the steep climbs
weren’t my cup of tea.”
It’s just unbelievable.
‘No, you’re 7.’ So it was me.”
“There are three more rounds, but I’m just happy
that my name is up there.”
Sharing second on 65 were Caroline Masson of
Germany, Jenny Haglund of Sweden, Stacy Lewis
of the United States and Azahara Munoz of Spain.
Chun’s best LPGA result came in her 2017 debut
when she shared 43rd at the New Zealand Women’s
Open.
“First year on LPGA, kind of tough year. But my
shots are getting better and better,” Chun said.
“When I make a mistake, ball go left, but this week
I’m trying to start right side of the pin.”
Chun hit only seven of 24 fairways but recovered
well on a course she had played only once, in a
Monday pro-am.
“My driver wasn’t that good, but iron was so good,”
Chun said. “Narrow fairway but small green. I’m just
focused on trying to make birdies.”
Thomas and Bernal, who dropped nine seconds to the Welshman,
were part of an impressive Ineos team effort that controlled the pace
over the most of the course as the peloton crossed seven mountains.
Thomas waited until first Mikel Landa, then Thibaut Pinot and,
finally, the overnight leader Alaphilippe himself had attacked before
showing his form was back after a nasty fall in the Tour de Suisse
in June.
“It’s one of those climbs where you really have to be patient,” the
33-year-old Thomas said.
Other good performances came from Colombia’s Nairo Quintana,
Briton Adam Yates, Irishman Dan Martin and Frenchman Thibaut
Pinot, who grew up in the region.
Two of the overall contenders lost significant time as 2014 champion
Vincenzo Nibali and Frenchman Romain Bardet suffered on the
slopes.
AFP
Lyles to assert might
It was really exciting
MONACO — Fast-emerging American sprinter Noah Lyles fired
a warning shot by insisting that he would push himself to the
maximum in the 100 meters of the Diamond League meet Friday,
just a week after becoming the fourth-fastest 200 meters sprinter
of all-time.
The 21-year-old timed a breath-taking 19.50 seconds in Lausanne
with only Usain Bolt, Yohan Blake and Michael Johnson having
gone quicker.
“It was really exciting,” Lyles said of his performance.
“Running is my passion, so running fast each and every time
and getting better and better is the exciting part of track so it
makes my job even more exciting.”
Lyles added: “The 200 meters went really well. I have definitely
seen an improvement there and we have been doing practice in
the 100 meters so I think Friday could be a race where I can put
everything together and see how far I can push myself.”
“There are nothing but fast times expected, all round.”
But Lyles would not commit to what time he expected would
win the race, which also features American veteran Justin Gatlin,
the 2004 Olympic gold medalist and current world champion.
“I’m not going to say a time. Any time I say a time all of a
sudden we’re going to hear ‘It’s world record pace, world record
pace!’”
In attempting to improve his century dash start, Lyles said he
had been working with Ralph Mann, a 1972 Olympic 400-meter
hurdles silver medalist for the United States, who went on to
become a leading sports biomechanist who also helped Gatlin.
Lyles said Mann had him working on strength using pressure
pads with the goal being to apply that pressure from the blocks
into his start.
“I have definitely gotten a lot stronger,” he said. “I’m finally
starting to get it.”
AFP
Chun, Sharp share lead
“The green is so small here, if you put it on the green
you’re going to birdie chances. My putter was good.”
Chun had back-to-back birdies at the third and
fourth holes and again at the par-5 seventh and
par-3 eighth. She also ran off three birdies in a row
starting at the 13th.
Sharp birdied three of the first four holes but took
her lone bogey at the par-3 second. She birdied the
eighth as well as back-to-back back nine birdies at
11-12 and 15-16.
“I played really well right from the first tee shot.
I felt really calm,” Sharp said.
“I’m hitting it really well, so I think I took advantage
of a little bit softer greens. I hit a lot of good wedges.”
“The challenge is on the tee shots to get the right
spot on the fairway. I did that well. As I made more
and more just the hole looked bigger and seemed
easier to make putts today than it has the last couple
weeks.”
AFP
Lewis skirts controversy
It is definitely not going to be
an easy weekend
SILVERSTONE, United Kingdom — Lewis
Hamilton did his best to avoid controversy
when he ducked comparisons with
other drivers and heaped praise on his
countrymen ahead of his home British
Grand Prix.
The defending five-time world
champion and current series leader
was asked to respond to claims by
rival Red Bull team boss Christian
Horner that Max Verstappen was
now the “best driver in the world.”
Horner suggested that the
21-year-old Dutch driver, who ended
Mercedes’ winning start to 2019 by
winning last month’s Austrian Grand Prix for
Red Bull, would beat Hamilton if they raced
in equal cars.
“I don’t compare myself to anybody,”
Hamilton said.
“I don’t need to. I don’t really have a
response to his claims. Ultimately every
now and then someone needs certain
attention.”
“I think Max has been doing a great job
and it is really exciting to watch. I think
the last race was fantastic. It will be really
interesting to see how they go moving
forward.”
Asked where he would be in 2024 and
beyond, Hamilton said he could not imagine
what he would be doing, but that if was still
coming to Silverstone, it would be as a driver.
“And if not, I won’t be here in any other
capacity.”
Hamilton will be seeking a record sixth
British Grand Prix win this weekend, as
Mercedes try to bounce back from their defeat
in the Styrian Alps.
“I think we are fully aware that the Red
Bulls and Ferraris have taken a step forward
and the pace that they had at the last race
was great,” he said.
“I expect this weekend that it will be closer
between us all.”
“Last year, Ferrari was super fast here
as was the Red Bull. I think the Red Bulls
were a little bit down, but now they have
the new engine I think they will be even
quicker. It is definitely not going to be an
easy weekend.”
He explained how much his home event
meant to him.
“It really is a spectacular weekend,” he
said.
AFP