Ewan slaloms to sprint win; Alaphilippe leads

SISTERON, FRANCE » A basketball player weaving through the defense. A skier dancing between the gates. A soccer player dribbling zig- zag toward the goal.

Australian rider Caleb Ewan borrowed the playbook from other sports as he slalomed through the bunch to win a sprint finish and claim the third stage of the Tour de France on Monday, while Julian Alaphilippe held onto the yellow jersey that he claimed with a dramatic stage victory a day earlier.

With about 100 meters to go, Ewan trailed five other riders before slinging himself through a narrow slice of road near the advertising barriers on the right side of the street. Then — after more than five hours in the saddle — Ewan darted to the left to overcome Sam Bennett and claim his fourth career stage win in the Tour by more than a wheel.

“I found my way through the wheels,” Ewan said. “Coming from behind, it’s a bit of a risk, but I found my way along the barrier and I came with a lot of speed and it worked.”

Living up to his nickname of “Pocket Rocket,” the 5- foot- 5) Ewan reached a top speed of 42.7 mph in the finale.

It was a perfectly timed acceleration.

“In the last k ( kilometer) I was a bit too far forward so I dropped back a bit into the wheels,” Ewan said. “That gave me time to rest the legs just a little before the last hit out.”

Irish champion Bennett, a teammate of Alaphilippe’s at Deceuninck– Quick- Step, crossed second and European champion Giacomo Nizzolo came third -- both with the same time as Ewan.

Alaphilippe crossed with the main pack and retained a four- second lead over Adam Yates, with Marc Hirschi still third overall, seven seconds behind.

“We had a really good day. The team really controlled everything. We tried to go for the sprint and Sam got second today. You can’t see, but I’m smiling,” Alaphilippe said behind a mask.

“We defended ( the yellow jersey) today and we’ll do it again tomorrow.”