Sport
The week’s best live action
CYCLING
If the cycling is dull, the Critérium du Dauphiné is worth it for the scenery. The race is a warm-up for the Tour de France and is known for its climbing stages and views of the beautiful Rhône-Alpes area of southeast France.
The 70th edition of the event begins on Sunday with a prologue stage starting in Valence (SS Pop-up 1, 11.35pm). There are seven stages, beginning on early Tuesday morning (SS2, 11.15am) and continuing throughout the week.
RUGBY The Crusaders are crushing it again, and this week they’re in cowbell country for a mighty clash against the Chiefs (SS1, Saturday, 7.15pm). The Blues have not been crushing it; their song of woe continues against the Melbourne Rebels at Eden Park (SS1, Saturday, 5.00pm). The other round 16 games are the Reds v Waratahs in Brisbane (SS3, Saturday, 9.40pm) and Brumbies v Sunwolves (SS3, Sunday, 6.00pm). After this week, Super Rugby takes a break until June 29 for the All Blacks’ test series against France, which begins on June 9.
ESPORTS eSports; they’re the way of the future, probably. It surely costs less to have cars crash on screen than in real life, anyway. After a qualifying event in April, eight “racers” are competing in New Zealand’s eSports racing league, Project CARS 2. The championship series runs over eight weeks from May 2; the circuits are digital recreations of real racing tracks. Here’s week six (SS Pop-up 1, Tuesday, 7.30pm). Venue: cyberspace.