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Pogacar crushes rivals to regain lead

GAVARNIE-GEDRE, France — Tadej Pogacar produced a tremendous solo ride on the iconic Col du Tourmalet on Thursday to earn a 23rd Tour de France stage victory, reclaim control of the race and sap his rivals’ morale after just six days of racing. Pogacar, who first wore the yellow jersey after winning at Les Angles earlier this week, made the most of the first big mountain trek of this year’s Tour in the Pyrenees to stamp his authority, sending a clear message to his rivals that he remains in a class of his own. The two-time world champion covered the final around 27 miles alone, ...

Power clubs big part of quarterfinals at World Cup

Eight teams are left in the World Cup, and the quarterfinals feature the top four countries in FIFA’s pretournament men’s world rankings plus two others in the top 10. France looks like a juggernaut and is the betting favorite at just under 2-1, followed by Spain and defending champion ...

Verlander says 2026 will be his final MLB season

DETROIT — Justin Verlander plans to call it a career later this year. The three-time Cy Young Award winner, two-time World Series champion and 2011 AL MVP will retire after this season with the Detroit Tigers. Verlander made the announcement on Wednesday, shortly after he was added as a ...

Blackhawks fans will wait as Bedard recovers

CHICAGO — Chicago Blackhawks center Connor Bedard will miss the start of the season after he had surgery on his left shoulder. Team physician Michael Terry says Bedard is expected “to make a full recovery in an approximate timeline of four months.” The NHL hasn’t announced its regular-season schedule, but the Blackhawks played their first game last season on Oct. 7. Bedard, who turns 21 on July 17, got hurt while skating with a group of NHL players last week in his hometown of Vancouver. It’s a major blow for a Blackhawks team trying to emerge from a painful rebuilding ...

‘Ferytale’ rolls on at Wimbledon

LONDON — If he keeps playing like this, Arthur Fery might just become Wimbledon royalty. Fery grew up five minutes from the All England Club and now the 114th-ranked player is a semifinalist at the grass-court Grand Slam. The 23-year-old British player, who needed a wild-card invitation to ...

Balogun storyline at World Cup the first one in 64 years

This World Cup has prompted some questions that simply cannot be answered. Can anyone stop Messi? Did Merlin the duck like wearing that jersey? What would have happened if the Congo’s statue fan had to sneeze? That said, if you’re a first-time soccer watcher still confused by all this ...