Mathieu van der Poel powers to thrilling stage 9 win – Tour de France

Mathieu van der Poel won an enthralling ninth stage of the Tour de France on Sunday, sprinting to the line after a chaotic day in the Massif Central. The Alpecin-Premier Tech rider had been part of a huge breakaway which eventually formed after 60km of aggressive racing in the boiling centre of France. Only four of the group survived to compete for the win, with Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility) taking second place, while Tom Pidcock (Pinarello-Q36.5) was third.

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Álvarez hits extra-time stunner to sink Switerland as Argentina progress

Julián Álvarez sent defending champion Argentina back to the World Cup semi-finals with a long-range strike in the 112th minute against Switzerland, while another goal by Lautaro Martínez with seconds left in extra time only served to make the 3-1 victory look a whole lot easier than it was Saturday night. Alexis Mac Allister opened the scoring from a corner helping La Albiceleste gut out another down-to-the-wire thriller and advance to play England on Wednesday in Atlanta.

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Bellingham brilliance sees England edge Norway to reach semi-finals

Jude Bellingham sent England into the World Cup semi-finals with two goals as the Three Lions overturned a 1-0 deficit to seal a 2-1 extra-time win and end Norway hopes of a first-ever last four appearance in the tournament. Andreas Schjelderup’s 36th minute opener was cancelled out by a Bellingham strike late in the first half and the Real Madrid star struck again early in extra time to decide the game.

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Linda Nosková overcomes Muchová fightback to claim Wimbledon crown

Czech youngster Linda Noskova recovered from missing five championship points to beat her friend Karolina Muchova and win an extraordinary and dramatic Wimbledon final. Noskova looked on course for a routine victory when she led 6-2 5-2 – but crumbled with the finishing line in sight as 10th seed Muchova won five games in a row to force a decider. However, the 21-year-old showed remarkable resilience to reset and finally clinch a 6-2 5-7 6-3 victory.

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Merlier doubles up with sensational sprint win on stage 8 – Tour de France

Tim Merlier has won his second consecutive sprint stage, coming from the back of the bunch to assert his claim on the green jersey. As the peloton turned the final corner onto the finish, the Soudal Quick-Step rider was so far behind —edged out on the corner— that he barely appeared in the television shots. Mathieu van der Poel started his final lead-out for teammate Jasper Philipsen, stringing the group out. Merlier was forced to launch early, riding the slipstream and hopping forward, rider by rider.

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