Julian Alaphilippe wins Tour de France time trial ahead of Geraint Thomas

By OlympicTalkJul 19, 2019, 11:55 AM EDT

Frenchman Julian Alaphilippe won the lone individual time trial of the Tour de France to keep the yellow jersey after 13 stages before the three-week event hits the Pyrenees this weekend.

Alaphilippe, who was not a pre-race title contender, relegated 2018 Tour de France winner Geraint Thomas to second place by 14 seconds in Friday’s 17-mile race of truth, increasing his overall lead to 86 seconds.

“I can’t believe it,” Alaphilippe said. “OK, we don’t have the team to win the Tour de France. We don’t have a lot of climbers in [team] Deceuninck–Quick-Step for the Tour, but we ride really aggressive, and we try to win.”

Alaphilippe, 27, has a best Grand Tour finish of 33rd at last year’s Tour. Thomas said he was surprised to be beaten by the Frenchman on Friday.

“He’s certainly the favorite and the one to watch at the moment,” Thomas said of a man who would end France’s longest Tour title drought (since Bernard Hinault in 1985). “If he can keep that up, then he’ll win, but it’s a long way to go. A lot of hard stages to come.”

Thomas gained 82 seconds on perhaps his biggest rival for the title, Ineos teammate Egan Bernal. Bernal dropped from third place to fifth and out of the white jersey.

The Tour heads into the Pyrenees on Saturday with a summit finish on the famed Col du Tourmalet sure to shake up the top 10 in the overall standings.

Early in Friday’s time trial, Stage 10 winner Wout van Aert of Belgium abandoned after crashing and being taken away by ambulance with a leg injury.

TOUR DE FRANCE: TV Schedule | Full Standings

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2023 French Open women’s singles draw, scores

By OlympicTalkJun 2, 2023, 5:56 PM EDT

At the French Open, Iga Swiatek of Poland eyes a third title at Roland Garros and a fourth Grand Slam singles crown overall.

The tournament airs live on NBC Sports, Peacock and Tennis Channel through championship points in Paris.

Swiatek, the No. 1 seed from Poland, can join Serena Williams and Justine Henin as the lone women to win three or more French Opens since 2000.

Having turned 22 on Wednesday, she can become the youngest woman to win three French Opens since Monica Seles in 1992 and the youngest woman to win four Slams overall since Williams in 2002.

FRENCH OPEN: Broadcast Schedule | Men’s Draw

But Swiatek is not as dominant as in 2022, when she went 16-0 in the spring clay season during an overall 37-match win streak.

She retired from her last pre-French Open match with a right thigh injury and said it wasn’t serious. Before that, she lost the final of another clay-court tournament to Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus.

Sabalenka, the No. 2 seed, and Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, the No. 4 seed and Wimbledon champion, are the top challengers in Paris.

No. 3 Jessica Pegula, the highest-seeded American man or woman, was eliminated in the third round.

No. 6 Coco Gauff, runner-up to Swiatek last year, is the best hope to become the first American to win a Grand Slam singles title since Sofia Kenin at the 2020 Australian Open. The 11-major drought is the longest for U.S. women since Seles won the 1996 Australian Open.

MORE: All you need to know for 2023 French Open

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2023 French Open Women’s Singles Draw

2023 French Open men’s singles draw, scores

By OlympicTalkJun 2, 2023, 5:56 PM EDT

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The French Open men’s singles draw is missing injured 14-time champion Rafael Nadal for the first time since 2004, leaving the Coupe des Mousquetaires ripe for the taking.

The tournament airs live on NBC Sports, Peacock and Tennis Channel through championship points in Paris.

Novak Djokovic is not only bidding for a third crown at Roland Garros, but also to lift a 23rd Grand Slam singles trophy to break his tie with Nadal for the most in men’s history.

FRENCH OPEN: Broadcast Schedule | Women’s Draw

But the No. 1 seed is Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, who won last year’s U.S. Open to become, at 19, the youngest man to win a major since Nadal’s first French Open title in 2005.

Now Alcaraz looks to become the second-youngest man to win at Roland Garros since 1989, after Nadal of course.

Alcaraz missed the Australian Open in January due to a right leg injury, but since went 30-3 with four titles. Notably, he has not faced Djokovic this year. They could meet in the semifinals.

Russian Daniil Medvedev, the No. 2 seed, was upset in the first round by 172nd-ranked Brazilian qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wild. It marked the first time a men’s top-two seed lost in the first round of any major since 2003 Wimbledon (Ivo Karlovic d. Lleyton Hewitt).

No. 9 Taylor Fritz and No. 12 Frances Tiafoe are the highest-seeded Americans, looking to become the first U.S. man to make the French Open quarterfinals since Andre Agassi in 2003. Since then, five different American men combined to make the fourth round on eight occasions.

MORE: All you need to know for 2023 French Open

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2023 French Open Women’s Singles Draw

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2023 French Open Men’s Singles Draw

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