Page 22 - ARUBA TODAY

A22 SPORTS
Friday 7 July 2017
Without Sagan and Cavendish, Kittel eases to Tour stage win

By ANDREW DAMPF and go. Otherwise, the only in-
JOHN LEICESTER cident of note came when
AP Sports Writers a beach umbrella floated
TROYES, France (AP) — across the pack with about
Marcel Kittel had little trou- 90 kilometers left prompt-
ble winning the sixth stage ing Froome and his Sky
of the Tour de France in a teammates to veer out of
mass sprint finish Thursday the way.
with Peter Sagan and Mark “There was a bit of wind
Cavendish both no longer and the parasol took off
in the race. and ended up in the road,”
Chris Froome held on to he said. “That’s the Tour.”
the leader’s yellow jersey Froome remained 12 sec-
after a sultry but unevent- onds ahead of Sky team-
ful day in the peloton. mate Geraint Thomas and
It was Kittel’s second vic- 14 seconds ahead of Fabio
tory in this year’s race and Aru of Italy.
11th overall in his Tour ca- Richie Porte in fifth place
reer. overall and other riders
As the other contenders eyeing victory in Paris on
bunched together on the July 23 were simply pleased
right side of the road, Kittel to get the long, hot stage
burst forward around them over without incident.
on the left and easily cre- “It was such a long day.
ated a comfortable gap Germany’s sprinter Marcel Kittel celebrates as he crosses the finish line to win the sixth stage of Probably, you know, could
allowing him to celebrate the Tour de France cycling race over 216 kilometers (134 miles) with start in Vesoul and finish in have had the same re-
as he crossed the line. Troyes, France, Thursday, July 6, 2017. sult with half the distance
“I was really confident in Associated Press but it’s a nice one to get
my team,” Kittel said. “I was done,” Porte said.
also really confident in my- abandoning the race with said. “The level that we Colombey-les-Deux-Eglises, On such days, Porte said,
self today. There was just a a broken shoulder. have here for the sprints is the hometown of France’s “there’s nothing to gain
moment when I broke free Kittel said the absence of still very, very high.” wartime hero and former but there’s so much to lose.
and started to go ahead.” Cavendish and Sagan has Kittel required slightly more president, Gen. Charles ... It was quite a frantic fin-
Stage 4 winner Arnaud De- altered the racing in that than five hours to ride the de Gaulle, and ended in ish.”
mare finished second and their teams are no longer mostly flat 216-kilometer champagne country. The Tour remains in Troyes
Andre Greipel was third. battling out the sprint fin- (134-mile) leg from Vesoul A three-man breakaway for the start of Stage 7 on
Sagan, the world cham- ishes. to Troyes, and then bent rode out front for most of Friday, a 213.5-kilometer
pion, was disqualified for He was repeatedly asked down over his handlebars, the stage. Perrig Queme- (133-mile) leg that again
elbowing Cavendish to after his win about their ab- close to tears, as he took in neur, Frederik Backaert sets up well for sprinters
the ground two days ago. sence. the victory. and Vegard Stake Laen- with a finish in the Burgundy
The fall resulted in Caven- “It’s a bit sad that it’s all The route in northeastern gen were caught by the wine town of Nuits-Saint-
dish, who has 30 Tour wins, about this decision,” he France passed through peloton with 3 kilometers to Georges.q

Wayde van Niekerk

The Pontaise stadium fell record at 68.43 meters with
her final throw.
Continued from Page 17 silent for Lasitskene’s third “People in Croatia have
and final attempt but the high expectations and I
“I didn’t come with a spe- bar was sent crashing by want to live up to that,” Ko-
cific time in mind, but I am the Russian. She competes lak said. Two Ethopian run-
pleased with this result,” as a neutral athlete while ners also set world-leading
said Van Niekerk, who is her country is suspended times: Genzebe Dibaba’s
favored to retain his world from competition due to 4 minutes 16.05 seconds
title in London next month. extensive doping. in the women’s mile, and
Van Niekerk was 0.07 faster Van Niekerk has sparkled Muktar Edris with 12:55.23
than the previous best 400 this season despite skip- in the men’s 5,000. The first
this season set by Fred Ker- ping his main event since three finishers all were fast-
ley of the United States. He some low-key home meet- er than Olympic champion
set a world record of 43.03 ings. Mo Farah’s previous world-
in taking Olympic gold last The South African star set leading time set in Eugene,
August. a world best of 30.81 in Oregon, in May.
Four other world-leading the seldom-raced 300 last Justin Gatlin, left, from the US and Akani Simbine, from South World champion Dafne
performances were set, week. He took Michael Africa compete in the men’s 100m race at the Athletissima IAAF Schippers of the Nether-
and the 30-year-old world Johnson’s 17-year-old Diamond League international athletics meeting in the Stade lands won the 200 in 22.10
record in women’s high mark by 0.04 in Ostrava, Olympique de la Pontaise in Lausanne, Switzerland, Thursday, for her fastest time of the
July 6, 2017.
jump was threatened by Czech Republic. Associated Press season. Olympic 800 silver
world champion Maria Las- Van Niekerk also has a medalist Francine Niyon-
itskene. world-leading 200 time of Olympic 100 champion, has American clocked 9.96 to saba of Burundi was just
Lasitskene cleared a sea- 19.84, set in Jamaica last a best 0.01 slower than Van edge Ben Youssef Meite of outside Caster Semenya’s
son-best 2.06 meters be- month, and a 9.94 in the Niekerk this season, and he Ivory Coast by 0.02. world-leading time to win
fore taking aim at the 2.09 100 that has him seventh in was unable to beat it Thurs- Olympic javelin champion in 1:56.82. Runner-up Char-
set in 1987 by Stefka Kosta- the world list this season. day as he ran into a slight Sara Kolak set a world- lene Lipsey of the U.S. ran a
dinova of Bulgaria. Justin Gatlin, the former headwind. The 35-year-old leading mark and national career-best 1:57.38.q