Sport THURSDAY 10 SEPTEMBER 2020 08 Tour de France: Roglic retains overall lead, Bennett keeps green jersey Ewan wins stage 11 in thrilling photo finish AFP — POITIERS exclusion should they have another positive test on Sunday. Australia’s Caleb Ewan won The race’s interim director stage 11 of the Tour de France Francois Lemarchand said yesterday by the narrowest of before the start of the 11th stage margins after a frantic bunch yesterday that teams who had sprint was decided on a photo received one positive test would finish, as Primoz Roglic retained be excluded if there was the overall lead. another from “the next battery The diminutive Lotto Soudal of tests”. rider who visualises various “But before there will be a sprint scenarios on the morning discussion between the health of the race edged Tuesday’s authorities, the Tour race man- stage winner Sam Bennett, who agement and the International retains the green jersey and Cycling Union to make the peloton superstar Peter Sagan. decision,” he added. Ewan won three stages in Lemarchand has been in 2019 and now says he will go charge since Tuesday, when for a third on this Tour too by race director Christian Prud- crossing the Alps to try his luck homme left the event after on the iconic Tour de France testing positive for the corona- climax on the cobbles of the virus. The affected teams Champs Elysees. remained tight-lipped over who “Once you get one you want had failed tests and over when two, and now I have two I want exactly the positive staff a third on the Champs Elysees member had been tested. in Paris,” said the diminutive The situation has left the sprinter who also won stage teams on edge. three at Sisteron. Cofidis team manager Ewan is a wily sprinter, Cedric Vasseur did not answer known for cool-headed analysis questions shortly before the in the heat of the action, and he start of the 11th stage, waving now has five Tour wins in total. reporters away because he was “I was really close to the Lotto Soudal rider Caleb Ewan of Australia and Deceuninck-Quick Step rider Sam Bennett of Ireland, wearing the green jersey, sprint outside of the race bubble on front, I was more forward than toward the line, yesterday. his way to pick up his car. I wanted to be, but I dropped AG2R-La Mondiale manager back into the bunch to watch,” to protect me, but I don’t mind, Teams race on a knife edge two members of a team test who had one staff member test Vincent Lavenu was fuming at the 26-year-old said. they got me there,” said the amid confusion over positive within a seven-day positive for the coronavirus are “those who would like to see a “I just kept calm and waited affable and popular rider. COVID-19 exclusion rules period, the whole outfit will be AG2R-La Mondiale, Cofidis and team go”. for the right gap to open. I didn’t The finish line at the Tour Four Tour de France teams, excluded from the race. Mitchelton-Scott. He said the team’s staff know if I’d won because I threw de France is equiped by including that of defending Yet a source with direct Half of each team was member who tested positive the bike and was looking down. cameras in either corner that champion Egan Bernal, are knowledge of the matter said tested last Sunday and the other had gone home to isolate and “But sometimes you can just can take thousands of images racing on a knife edge after one that organisers may backtrack half last Monday and they will his room mate was also sent feel it,” he added. per second, as with motor of their members tested positive and reset the day-count after be tested again next Sunday and packing despite testing neg- His win is doubly impressive cycling’s Grand Prix while each for the coronavirus amid con- consultation with the French Monday in the same way. ative. “We don’t plan further as his team have already lost bike is equipped with a micro- fusion over how exclusion rules government. This means that if any of the testing before the battery of three riders. chip, delivering the instant will apply. Apart from Bernal’s Ineos- positive tests were from last tests in Grenoble,” Lavenu “We no longer have the men results. The rules state that should Grenadiers, the other teams Monday then the team risks added. Heat oust Bucks to reach East finals; Lakers down Rockets AFP — MIAMI against the defending NBA champion Raptors three games The Miami Heat punched their to two. ticket to the NBA Eastern In Western Conference Conference finals on Tuesday, action, LeBron James scored 36 beating top-seeded Milwaukee points and Anthony Davis 103-94 as injured Bucks star added 26 as the Los Angeles The giant Olympic rings are seen behind Japan’s national flag Giannis Antetokounmpo Lakers powered to the finish in in Tokyo in this August 6, 2020 file photo. watched from the bench. a 112-102 victory over the Jimmy Butler and Goran Houston Rockets. Dragic finished with 17 points The Lakers grabbed a 2-1 apiece as six Heat players series lead and James notched IOC confident of safe scored in double figures and an NBA record 162nd career Miami completed a 4-1 series play-off win. Tokyo Games, too early victory in a bruising encounter “It says that I’ve played with against the league’s top a lot of great teams,” said James, Jimmy Butler of the defensive team. who won two NBA titles with Miami Heat drives for deadlines: Bach Khris Middleton led the the Miami Heat and one with the ball against Bucks with 23 points. the Cleveland Cavaliers. REUTERS — LONDON March as the COVID-19 pan- Antetokounmpo -- tipped Wesley Matthews of James Harden scored 33 demic swept across the to scoop a second straight NBA the Milwaukee Bucks points with nine rebounds and The International Olympic globe. Bach said while Most Valuable Player award this during Game Five. nine assists and Russell West- Committee has confidence in several aspects of the Games’ season -- aggravated his brook added 30 points for its preparations and in organisation, such as inter- sprained right ankle in the first The Bucks declared him campaign that the Bucks built Houston in a back and forth Japanese government national spectators or qual- half of the Bucks’ game-four inactive less than an hour the best regular-season record battle that saw 16 lead changes. support for next year’s Tokyo ifications processes, needed overtime victory over the Heat. before tipoff on Tuesday. only to come up short in the The Lakers’ reserves scored Olympics, but said all to be finalised months in The loss of Antetokounmpo, playoffs. 42 points, with Houston’s only scenarios would be discussed advance, no deadline for NBA PLAY-OFF RESULTS who averaged career highs of In 2019 they fell to the points off the bench the 16 of in the coming weeks amid those had yet been set. Eastern Conference (Semi-finals) 29.5 points and 13.6 rebounds eventual champion Toronto Jeff Green. the ongoing pandemic. “At some stage before the per game this season, was a Raptors in six games in the Rajon Rondo, who scored IOC President Thomas Games we will have to take Miami Heat 103 Milwaukee Bucks 94 huge blow for the Bucks, as they Eastern Conference finals. 21 off the bench for Los Angeles, Bach (pictured) said yes- these relevant decisions but (Miami win series 4-1) tried to do what no NBA team The fifth-seeded Heat will hit back-to-back three-pointers terday that his organisation right now I am not in a Western Conference (Semi-finals) has done before: come back face either the Boston Celtics or and came up with a steal and was committed to delivering position to give you a con- LA Lakers 112 Houston Rockets 102 from an 0-3 deficit to win a Toronto Raptors for a place in layup as the Lakers surged a safe Games and had the full crete answer. We don’t know (Lakers lead series 2-1) seven-game playoff series. the NBA Finals. ahead with a 17-5 scoring run support of the Japanese gov- how the world looks like It’s the second straight The Celtics lead their series to start the fourth quarter. ernment following the resig- tomorrow.” nation of Prime Minister Qualification for the Shinzo Abe, but the look of Games starts months before next year’s Games was still the event while international unclear. travel for the Olympics is also Knights blank Stars to level NHL series “In the coming weeks you usually booked months or will see important and even years in advance. intensive discussions taking “The situations are AFP — LOS ANGELES “We didn’t play our game in place with regard to different changing day by day when game one,” Golden Knights scenarios to COVID-19 you look at different travel Robin Lehner made 24 saves as coach Peter DeBoer said of the counter measures,”measures, Bach told restrictions around theth the top-seeded Vegas Golden 1-0 defeat in the series opener. a news conference following world,”world,” Bach said. “But“BuB t I dod Knights shut out the Dallas Stars “Tonight, we got our game anan executive board meeting.meeting. notnot knowknow aboutabout a 3-0 to level their NHL Western back, and once we got that first “We“We reremainmain ffocusedocused oonn deadlinedeadline forfor theth Conference final at one game goal, I thought we looked like deliveringdelivering safe and suc-suc- reasonreason tthathat wwe apiece on Tuesday.