It's only a leap year away

So long as John Cusack and the Mayans are wrong.

London 2012 Olympics

Image of the day

Today...

The boyos before the start of the Irish Open

Previously...

With last years US Open winner Graeme McDowell in Portrush
Photo: Belfast Telegraph

And previously still...

Guinness
Clarke's two sons in background

And you thought Nascar was for hicks

Businessmen are also welcome.

Pastor Joe Nelms' opening prayer at Nascar Nationwide in Nashville Tennessee included the following heart felt lines...

"Thank you [Lord] for the Dodges and the Toyotas. Thank you for the Fords and most of all thank you for Roush and Yates partnering to give us the power we see before us tonight. Thank you for GM performance technology and RO7 engines. Thank you for Sunoco Racing Fuel and Goodyear tyres that bring power and performance to the track."

Smoking hot wife?

So BBC Sport are fans of Spinal Tap then?

Audio clips:

Video clips:

Confused?

Everyone's new favourite cyclist: Johnny Hoogerland

So he was in a group of 5 riders leading the race by 5 minutes and in with a chance of a stage victory.

Then there was the crash...



Which led to this...

and this...

and this.

But Hoogerland was back on his bike and somehow he finished the stage...

... and tearfully picked up the King of the Mountains jersey (and the combativity award) which he won over the stage. (He won four mountain climbs on the stage.)



Finally, everyone's new favourite cyclist gave an interview which oozed class, poise and maturity.



JH. What a hero.

Wouter Weylandt?

Pictures coutsey of the Australian, the Age and Daylife.

Wladimir Klitschko summarizes his fight with David Haye

Big man holding up pictures.

Bradley Wiggins out of the Tour

 

What a differnce a day makes. Yesterday Sky (the only UK based team in the Tour) won their first stage of the Tour de France.

But today Bradley Wiggins (Sky's team leader, who looked a shoe in for a top 5 finish overall) crashed and was forced to abandon the Tour with a collar bone injury.

Really unfortunate, hope he can recover and come back next year.

It's up to Cavendish again to fly the flag for the UK.

Good idea, bad idea

Read report after victory but before victory swim (BBC)

Read report after swim... (BBC)

Now there's a surprise

Nudge, nudge.

Tevez: I want to leave Manchester City (ESPN)

The Mountain Bridge

 

There was only one classified mountain on stage 3 of the Tour: a bridge.

And what a bridge.

A group of five riders broke away from the peloton in a bid to claim the solitary point on offer for the King of the Mountains jersey at the "summit" of the mountain... er bridge. (See video below)

At 66m the bridge (Côte du Pont de Saint-Nazaire) split the peloton in two but the crosswinds did not prevent the stragglers from rejoining the pack and finishing the stage with a bunch sprint.

Mark Cavendish is in the spotlight once again: he won the peloton's sprint for the intermediate green jersey spoils but came in contact with current yellow jersey wearer and main contender for the green, Thor Hushovd. (Click for video)

Later Cavendish was bumped and forced off his racing line in the build up to the finish. The stewards decided to punish both Cavendish and Thor Hushov for the argy-bargy by taking back the points they accumulated on the stage. No doubt there will be appeals galore tomorrow.

The stage was won by Tyler Ferrar who became the first American to win a Tour stage on 4 July.

In spite of puncturing his rear tyre at the halfway point, Nicolas Roche finished safely in the pack with the same time as all the top finishers.

Tour de France 2011: Cavendish punished as Farrar wins (BBC)

Loudest Tennis Points

Grunting reaches new levels.

Definitely a gap in the market for ear plugs at Wimbledon.

Nicolas Roche blogging, vlogging and occasionally cycling

Roche after the crash which forced him to retire from the Critérium du Dauphiné.
Not ideal preparation three weeks before the Tour de France!

Just as he did last year, Nicolas Roche is keeping a daily diary in the Irish Independent following the thrills and spills of the peloton. Check out the first entry.

Here's a snipet from the diary where he descibes his injury after his first race back.

It was my first race back after a crash in the Criterium du Dauphine had left me looking like something you'd see hanging in a butchers window. Battered and bruised, I had cuts running literally from my shin to my finger tips and they're only beginning to heal now. I needed an operation to repair a hole in my elbow and two stitches in my chin. Having banged my head off a concrete road bollard I was in a daze for almost three days afterwards and had to take five days off the bike because I could hardly walk.

He's also keeping a video diary which is basically a brief chat about the previous stage. First video below.

Allez Nico!

Links
YouTube Channel

Diary on Indo site

Diary on Nico's site

AG2R La Mondiale Facebook page

Spectator causes crash at the Tour (Stage 1 Results)

With 8km in what looked like a fairly tame opening stage of the Tour de France, a stupid spectator caused a crash which has exploded the race for the yellow jersey.

Of the contenders for the GC, Alberto Contador was worst affected by the incident. To his misfortune Contador was caught up in yet another crash some 3km from the finish line. In the end he lost 1 min 20 sec on the stage winner, Belgium's own Philippe Gilbert. (The Belgians are hooting their horns in celebration in Brussels. Gilbert's form has been unmatched this year so he's certainly in with a shout of winning.)

Ireland's Nicolas Roche was in a crash at the start of the stage, but managed to avoid the carnage thereafter, finishing with the leaders and crossing the line in 19th spot.

Here's the top 30.

Results Stage 1 - Passage du Gois → Mont des Alouettes (Tour de France official site)

Contador booed by public at Tour opening

That's the French in a gladiatorial amphitheatre for you...

Contador won the Tour de France last year but failed a doping test during the event. Bizzarely the hearing has been postponed again and again will not be held until August.

Should he be found guilty Contador faces a two year ban and the stripping of his 2010 victory. But he's still riding and is the hot favourite to win the Tour again. (It would be his 4th victory in 5 years.)

Confused? So is Stephen Roche who articulated as much in a Eurosport interview yesterday.

Tour de France: 1st Stage

Tour de France 2011: Alberto Contador angry at drugs appeal (BBC)

Utter lunacy: the Williams sisters' worst outfits

Venus warming up for match on her eponymous planet.


Serena in a Cameroon football kit... as you do.


At the US Open playing tennis. Not scuba diving.


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Oh for God's sake!

AND Venus has a fashion degree. Très haute couture no doubt.

Further Reading (if your eyes can stand it)
Venus Williams graduates with fashion design degree (Williamssisters.org)

The 10 craziest Williams sisters outfits (Oddetorium Blog)

Anyone for lattice? Venus and 'the worst outfit ever seen on a tennis court' (Daily Mail)

Spinal Tap love curling

"Curling... curling... lets all go bloody curling... on espn."