death tribble Posted July 6, 2022 Report Share Posted July 6, 2022 Simon Clarke from Israel Premier Tech won from the break. The cobbles caused carnage and Wout Van Aert had to drop back to help Jonas Vingegaard and Pogacar did his best to take advantage. Roglic fell as well and may have lost too much time. Clarke did not have a team in January until the Israel called him up and he gave them their first Tour stage and his own. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/62068724 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclevlad Posted July 7, 2022 Report Share Posted July 7, 2022 If I remember the standings, tho, van Aert lost very little time to Pogacar, something like 15-20 seconds. It's not likely to matter, either. Prediction for tomorrow: Pogacar takes the stage and yellow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclevlad Posted July 7, 2022 Report Share Posted July 7, 2022 While I do like Nadal, I actually wish he'd lost today. Why? He was *clearly* badly hampered by an abdominal injury, His serves were quite soft slices...I'd say, LESS than second-serve pace, even on first serves. Trainer visited twice. That said, he gutted out a LONG 5 set win. To play...Kyrgios. UGH. Double ugh. Nadal may not be able to play at all, and if he isn't a feeling WHOLE lot better on Friday, he's got no shot unless Kyrgios totally implodes. (Have to account for that.) It also strongly hints at a Djokovic-Kyrgios final. I refuse to acknowledge it any further. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
death tribble Posted July 7, 2022 Report Share Posted July 7, 2022 Tadej Pogacar won today's stage. Wout Van Aert took off and was leading until the final kilometres. It gave his team the day off. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/62084254 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclevlad Posted July 7, 2022 Report Share Posted July 7, 2022 My take is that today was the last chance for WVA to show off, while in yellow. He had little to no chance to keep it; he wasn't gonna hang on, come that final climb no matter what. And even if he held onto it today, come tomorrow? Not a snowball's chance. Not with a Cat 1 summit finish. The early part is largely uphill, and with a Cat 3 at about the midpoint, so today was his day to hang out at the front and bask in the glory. So he did. And the peloton let him have it, mostly...not sure they 'let' him have the sprint points, but if he was a solo breakaway, well, the peloton could fight it out for 2nd, 3rd, 4th place points and no real harm done. Also not sure I'd say Jumbo Visma took the day off. They finished 4th in the team standings for the day. Ineos is starting to show its depth there; they've now got over a minute lead. I suspect Ineos and UAE (Pogacar's team) will try to blow the race up tomorrow. Stage 7 finishes up with a STEEP climb...not just black, could almost call it double black. I won't be surprised if a few riders fail to finish before the cutoff time. That is just one BRUTE of a finishing climb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tkdguy Posted July 7, 2022 Report Share Posted July 7, 2022 20 hours ago, unclevlad said: While I do like Nadal, I actually wish he'd lost today. Why? He was *clearly* badly hampered by an abdominal injury, His serves were quite soft slices...I'd say, LESS than second-serve pace, even on first serves. Trainer visited twice. That said, he gutted out a LONG 5 set win. To play...Kyrgios. UGH. Double ugh. Nadal may not be able to play at all, and if he isn't a feeling WHOLE lot better on Friday, he's got no shot unless Kyrgios totally implodes. (Have to account for that.) It also strongly hints at a Djokovic-Kyrgios final. I refuse to acknowledge it any further. I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but Nadal has officially withdrawn from the tournament. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclevlad Posted July 7, 2022 Report Share Posted July 7, 2022 35 minutes ago, tkdguy said: I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but Nadal has officially withdrawn from the tournament. Damn. Makes me sad but it isn't surprising, if you watched any of his match against Fritz. Crud...means Kyrgios gets a walk to the final. Gross. Another angle here is, he's gonna have to rest it for a while. Don't know how long, but clearly, this is something where you err on the side of caution. It should be OK for the US Open, but my confidence isn't that high. He's had so many physical problems in the last several years, and particularly this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
death tribble Posted July 8, 2022 Report Share Posted July 8, 2022 Tadej Pogacar wins on Planche des Belles Filles but only just. Vingegaard and Thomas were on his tail. I feel sorry for Kemna who almost had it won. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/62097721 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclevlad Posted July 8, 2022 Report Share Posted July 8, 2022 20 minutes ago, death tribble said: Tadej Pogacar wins on Planche des Belles Filles but only just. Vingegaard and Thomas were on his tail. I feel sorry for Kemna who almost had it won. Mmmm...I'd say you're mischaracterizing this. Kamna blew up with 50 meters to go...on the 24% stretch. But Vingegaard was the first to pass him...then Pogacar nipped *him* with a last burst to win by a couple bike lengths at the line. Thomas wasn't that close...14 seconds back, and actually finished 5th. Roglic was 3rd, Kamna struggled home in 4th. Pogacar put a fair bit of time into everyone but Vingegaard. As you'd expect with a Cat 1 summit finish, the field was pretty shattered. Nielsen held on to KoM...by 1 point. That could be gone tomorrow; it's a funky stage. Hills throughout, much of it is at some altitude, around 1 km elevation. 4 climbs, cat 4, 3, and 4 with an uphill 3 to finish it. The NBC talking heads are anticipating a breakaway that may manage to be a stayaway. If so, then the points get scattered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pariah Posted July 8, 2022 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2022 I foresee no difficulties with this whatsoever. World Cup Stadiums in Qatar Will Be Alcohol Free, per Report Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Logan D. Hurricanes Posted July 8, 2022 Report Share Posted July 8, 2022 Pariah 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted July 8, 2022 Report Share Posted July 8, 2022 Hey, it'll only take a few dozen on-the-spot beheadings to make it stick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclevlad Posted July 9, 2022 Report Share Posted July 9, 2022 Gotta think this is also gonna do wonders for on-site attendance...... </sarcasmoff> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
death tribble Posted July 9, 2022 Report Share Posted July 9, 2022 Wout Van Aert wins stage 8 of the Tour de France https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/62108475 Rybakina wins the Ladies Final at Wimbledon https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/62101697 Ireland beat the All Blacks in New Zealand for the first time. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/62104782 assault and tkdguy 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cygnia Posted July 9, 2022 Report Share Posted July 9, 2022 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted July 9, 2022 Report Share Posted July 9, 2022 Exactly that sort of thing -- it happened to me twice in the same mixed-doubles set -- caused me to abandon tennis forever at age 15. The girls thought it was funny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclevlad Posted July 9, 2022 Report Share Posted July 9, 2022 2 hours ago, Cancer said: Exactly that sort of thing -- it happened to me twice in the same mixed-doubles set -- caused me to abandon tennis forever at age 15. The girls thought it was funny. Well if you were like most 15 year old boys, you earned that.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted July 9, 2022 Report Share Posted July 9, 2022 No, I hadn't done anything at that point to deserve it; it was merely a manifestation of me peaking at RL DEX 6. After the second hit, I got up, I said, "I am not playing this --------- game again," and aside from a compulsory PE unit in school in a different place most of a year later, I never have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grailknight Posted July 9, 2022 Report Share Posted July 9, 2022 The sad truth is, that's a good strategy without intending to hit the player. That's a difficult shot to make a good return on because you can't really swing you racket at a good angle that close to your body. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
death tribble Posted July 10, 2022 Report Share Posted July 10, 2022 Charles Leclerc wins the Austrian Grand Prix https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/62114587 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
death tribble Posted July 10, 2022 Report Share Posted July 10, 2022 Bob Jungels wins stage 9 of the Tour de France https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/62115501 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclevlad Posted July 10, 2022 Report Share Posted July 10, 2022 Pogacar doesn't win...Jungels jumps out from the breakaway and stays away in a beautiful ride...but he smashes most of the field again. He nails back a good minute and a half in the last part. The peloton by and large chewed up the gap to the breakaway group, until that group fell apart. At that point, the surge from the breakaway, with Jungels, Pinot, and others that weren't relevant to the GC, was given the win and the time bonuses, so Vingegaard had no chance to pick up any time. Pogacar's sprint to the line didn't lose Vingegaard, but did snatch 3 seconds from Thomas, Yates, Gaudu, and Bardet, the next 4 in the GC. Starting to see some notable separation in the GC; 12th place is now 3 minutes back. Wout continues to kick butt. Manages to get into the breakaway, then wins the sprint when, again, no one else significant to the green is anywhere close. Pogacar grabs some points at the end; he's up to 3rd, but Wout's lead is now 135. That's almost 2 full stages...the sprint and the finish. The post-race is about over; they're showing the podiums right now. There's still over 80 riders on the road, 23 minutes after the winner finished. Pro cyclists are insane. EDIT...had a thought. Where does Pogacar stand in terms of # of yellow jerseys? He's at 23 now...in 3 years, at only 23 years old. That puts him 16th overall, and 4th among the more modern, professional-team riders (Indurain, Froome, Cancellara). Speaking of Froome, unfortunately he finished 12 minutes back today, and is now 28 minutes back overall. Looks like his horrific accident took away too much; makes me wonder if he'll retire after the Tour. He's also 37. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
death tribble Posted July 10, 2022 Report Share Posted July 10, 2022 Djokovic beats Kyrgios in 4 sets. to take his 21st Grand slam title https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/62109725 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tkdguy Posted July 10, 2022 Report Share Posted July 10, 2022 1 hour ago, death tribble said: Djokovic beats Kyrgios in 4 sets. to take his 21st Grand slam title https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/62109725 To a large extent Kyrgios beat himself. He lost his temper several times during the match, while Djokovic kept his cool. This may be Djokovic's only grand slam title this year, as his anti-vaccine stance may end up with him being barred from entering the US Open. Nadal may also be absent because of his injury. I know he wants to be able to enter, but it's not guaranteed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclevlad Posted July 11, 2022 Report Share Posted July 11, 2022 Kyrgios does that in many, if not most, of his matches. IIRC it was in his round of 16 vs. Nakashima...4th set, tied at 3. Nakashima breaks, then holds his serve. Down 5-3, Kyrgios just hands his service game...an underhand serve, no effort put into any point...to blow the 4th and tie the match. He's probably the worst combination of horrible on-court behavior and tanking. Tomic might tank more, but Kyrgios does it all. And I definitely think it costs him regularly. I've felt that Murray, who yelled at his box *frequently,* cost himself too. Tooooo angry, too tense. Both seem to explode at a moment's notice, with no clear provocation. With Nadal, yeah, we just don't know. Realize: he had some nerves in his foot *destroyed* to alleviate the pain from his issue. This is what he has:https://mss-ijmsr.com/mueller-weiss-syndrome-a-less-elucidated-and-unusual-cause-of-midfoot-pain-a-case-report/#:~:text=Mueller Weiss Syndrome is a,the fifth decade of life. This is a fairly technical presentation, but it seems like continuing to play is not a great idea longer-term. I have to believe the doctors have said it won't accelerate issues *a lot* tho, or Rafa would probably retire. If he does have to get foot surgery, I suspect that will be it. Feet don't recover quickly, as a rule, and obviously, there are few exercise options. I don't see him pulling a Murray, and trying a comeback that's shown...ok, he can play at the tour level, but so far, he's just another body in the field. EDIT...and let's not forget that it was an abdominal muscle tear that forced him out. AND he's going to become a father...his first kid. That might not be a big factor for a while; it's not like he plays a grueling schedule, so he can likely play some, and have plenty of time for family. But that will change, probably sooner than later, as the kid grows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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