The tricolor sport was in the spotlight this weekend between the national cycling championships, the podium of the French basketball players and the performances of the pilots of the Hexagon in the mechanical disciplines.
Before the Tour de France, the French cycling championships animated the weekend in the sports news. French sport also shone in the women’s Eurobasket, with a bronze medal despite the frustration for Les Bleues, or even with Sébastien Ogier, winner of the Kenya rally. On the tennis side, Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz won his first grass court tournament, a week away from Wimbledon.
Cycling: Valentin Madouas and Victoire Berteau champions of France
Valentin Madouas became champion of France, Sunday June 25, on the circuit around Cassel, in the North. At the end of a race as exhausting as it was explosive, the Groupama-FDJ rider won solo with a 1’49” lead over his teammate Rudy Molard and 1’57” over Julien Bernard (Trek-Segafredo ). The French team thus had the feeling of accomplishment on arrival, especially as David Gaudu and Thibaut Pinot, both aligned with the Tour de France, were actors of the day. Announced favorite, Julian Alaphilippe (Soudal – Quick-Step) however did not weigh.
The lively women’s race on Saturday went to local Victoire Berteau, a runner from the Cofidis team. At 22, the one who divides her season between road and track did well in the final to win her tricolor jersey. In the time trial, Rémi Cavagna (Soudal – Quick-Step) and Cédrine Kerbaol (Ceratizit-WNT Pro Cycling) were rewarded.
Basketball: Les Bleues third in Eurobasket
In bronze at the last Olympics, the French women’s team kept this metal this time during the Eurobasket. In Slovenia, the formation of Jean-Aimé Toupane won third place against Hungary on Sunday (82-68). Stronger than their opponents who had not played at this level since 1997, Les Bleues dominated the debates head and shoulders, thanks in particular to Iliana Rupert.
Absent the day before, the inside missed her teammates who only had gold as their goal. The French broke their teeth on Belgium in the semi-finals, ending their series of five consecutive finals in this competition. The latter was finally won by Belgium, titled for the first time after a fiery last quarter against Spain (64-58).
Tennis: Carlos Alcaraz returns to world number 1
Novak Djokovic having decided not to align himself with the grass season before Wimbledon, Carlos Alcaraz had the free field to take the place of world number 1 from him and he was not asked to do so. For his first participation in a grass tournament outside the London Grand Slam, the Spanish prodigy won the Queen’s ATP 500 by dominating the Australian Alex de Minaur, Sunday, in the final (6-4, 6-4 ).
At 20, “Carlitos” has thus become the second youngest titled player on all three surfaces (earth, hard and grass) behind Lleyton Hewitt. If the Kazakhstani Alexander Bublik won the Halle tournament at the same time thanks to his victory against the Russian Andrey Rublev, it is Carlos Alcaraz who seems best able to dethrone “Djoko”, quadruple reigning champion in London, beginning of July.
MotoGP: joy then pain for Fabio Quartararo in the Netherlands, weekend without for Johann Zarco
In Assen’s Cathedral of Speed, Fabio Quartararo has gone through all the stages, from a small miracle to torture. Arrived with a fractured toe during a run a few days earlier, “El Diablo” had ideally started his weekend, with his best qualification of the season (4th), then his first podium in the sprint race on Saturday with a third place obtained thanks to to a penalty imposed on Brad Binder (KTM). The Grand Prix on Sunday was another story: a missed start then a heavy crash on the third lap. Quartararo injured his left shoulder and arm, while aggravating his fractured toe.
In his swerve on the ground, the Niçois led his compatriot Johann Zarco, who was missed in the Netherlands. The Pramac Ducati rider finished out of the points in the sprint race, he who had scored three podiums in a row in previous Grands Prix. Zarco slipped to fifth place in the drivers’ standings, a little more dominated by Francesco Bagnaia, winner of the race on Sunday.
WRC: third victory of the season for Sébastien Ogier
Sébastien Ogier, sir 50%! For his sixth rally of the season, the eight-time WRC world champion signed his third victory on Sunday in Kenya. The Toyota driver had to fight to the end with Kalle Rovanperä, beaten by less than seven seconds. The Frenchman, however, had a great scare at the start of the last day, Sunday, by losing his tailgate in the middle of the track. The incident fortunately remained without consequence, not depriving him of his 58th career victory. Rovanperä remains at the top of the drivers’ classification.