Tour leader is punished
Julian Alaphilippe’s ride in the yellow jersey is over, and his rivals had nothing to do with it.
The Tour de France leader was stripped of the coveted shirt on Wednesday after being handed a time penalty for illegally receiving provisions near the end of Stage 5, which had been largely uneventful until then.
British rider Adam Yates was moved up to first place in the revised general standings after Alaphilippe was docked 20 seconds.
“I don’t think any rider would want to take the jersey like this,” Yates said. “I just found out. Nobody wants to take a jersey like this.”
Only minutes after versatile Belgian rider Wout van Aert won the stage in a sprint finish, TV footage showed Alaphilippe grabbing a bottle from a staff member of his Deceuninck-Quick Step squad about 11 miles from the finish.
Under racing rules, riders are not allowed to receive provisions – either drinks or food – during the final 12.5 miles of a stage.
BASEBALL
New York Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman was suspended for three games Wednesday, a day after he threw a fastball near the head of pinch-hitter Michael Brosseau while closing out his first save of the season in a 5-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.
Chapman said the pitch was not intentional and he is appealing the suspension.
“I think it was a little harsh,” Chapman said through a translator. “That’s the reason I’m going to appeal.”
Chapman, who previously was disciplined in his career for intentionally throwing at the head area, also was fined by Major League Baseball.
SOCCER
Lionel Messi’s future at Barcelona looked no closer to being resolved after the first meeting between the player’s father and club officials ended without an agreement, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press.
The person said club president Josep Bartomeu met for more than 90 minutes with Jorge Messi to discuss the the Argentina star’s request to leave the club, but that neither part made any concessions.
Lionel Messi last week told Barcelona he wanted to leave the club and invoked a contract clause that allowed him to depart for free at the end of the season.
But Barcelona claimed the clause expired in June and said he must see out his contract until June 2021, unless the buyout clause of $837 million is paid.