Pello Bilbao took his first career Tour de France stage win from a breakaway in Issoire and dedicated the victory to his late team-mate Gino Mader.

Bilbao beat Georg Zimmermann to the line as six riders made it to the finish to contest the stage win, sparking emotional scenes as he and his Bahrain Victorious team remembered Mader, who died aged 26 following a high-speed crash at the Tour de Suisse last month.

The main peloton came to the line a little under three minutes later with Jonas Vingegaard retaining the yellow jersey and his 17-second advantage over Tadej Pogacar, but Bilbao’s win saw him move up to fifth overall.

Following Mader’s death, Bilbao had pledged to replicate the Swiss rider’s charitable gesture – donating one euro to environmental causes for every rider he finishes ahead of on each stage, also promising to double the donation if he won the stage.

And in his podium interview, the Basque rider said the memory of Mader was “the only reason” for his win.

He said: “It was hard to prepare the last two weeks with him in mind, but staying with my family at home helped me a lot, just to keep calm, be positive and put all my positive energy to try to do something nice in the Tour.

“I wanted to do it in the first Basque stages, that was so special for me but it was not possible so I just waited for my moment. I was maybe thinking my position in the overall was going to be a problem but I decided to make an all-in move and in the end it was the right movement.

“My first victory in the Tour in 13 years as a pro is such a special moment for me.”

The 167km stage from Vulcania through the Massif Central looked custom-designed for a breakaway, but things were never so simple on a day when the attacks raged from the start to the finish.

Vingegaard and Pogacar were both involved in some of the early moves, splitting the main peloton, before 14 riders eventually got away.

But it was only occasionally a cohesive group. Krists Neilands launched an attack at the foot of the final climb and crested it with an advantage of 30 seconds, but that tumbled on the descent towards town and he was caught by a chasing group of five with three kilometres left.

Bilbao felt confident he was the fastest and let Zimmerman move to the front before launching his sprint with a couple of hundred metres left.

“With cold blood I let Zimmermann make his sprint and I went on the wheel, then it was just full gas for the last 200 metres thinking of nothing,” he said.

“I crossed the line and I just put out all the energy inside of me and remembered the reason for this victory, a special one – for Gino.”

Elina Svitolina claimed the mother of all victories by knocking out world number one Iga Swiatek to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals.

The unseeded Ukrainian, who only gave birth to her daughter Skai nine months ago, ousted top seed Swiatek with a dramatic 7-5 6-7 (5) 6-2 victory on Centre Court.

Swiatek, just as she had in her previous match against Belinda Bencic, came from a set down to draw level and seemed to have snatched the momentum.

But with Jeremy Clarkson watching from the crowd, Svitolina found top gear just when she needed it to secure a famous victory.

“I don’t know what is happening right now, it’s really unbelievable,” Svitolina, also a semi-finalist here in 2019, said.

“I’m really, really happy that I got this chance to play here again. I was fighting, it was not easy. Iga is world number one and always fighting. It was an unbelievable match and I’m really happy I could win this one.”

Swiatek looked dialled in from the start this time, breaking the Svitolina serve in the opening game.

But as she served for the set, the 22-year-old from Warsaw gifted Svitolina a break back to love with an uncharacteristically sloppy game, topped off with a double-fault.

Swiatek was rattled and Svitolina began finding her range, punishing a second serve to bring up two set points and edging in front when Swiatek’s backhand floated long.

A slight delay as the roof was closed gave Swiatek a chance to regroup but a hold to love at the start of the second set meant Svitolina had won 10 of the previous 12 points.

However, nerves started to kick in when, at 40-0, Svitolina missed the simplest of volleys at the net and then double-faulted, allowing Swiatek to break.

Swiatek then got a dose of the jitters herself, a double-fault giving Svitolina two break points and a long forehand levelling the set at 3-3.

Svitolina dug out a second ace of the match to go 4-1 ahead in the tie-break but Swiatek reeled her back in with a couple of rasping forehands which clipped the line and an exquisite backhand winner.

But Svitolina came again, breaking the reigning French and US Open champion twice to lead 4-1 in the decider.

Two more aces made it 5-1 and despite some late resistance from the Pole Svitolina came through, covering her mouth with her hand in utter shock when Swiatek hit the net on match point.

Swiatek has been a huge supporter of the Ukrainian cause following the Russian invasion and wears a blue and yellow ribbon in her cap.

Svitolina, whose emotional win over Victoria Azarenka of Belarus in the fourth round was one of the matches of the tournament, added: “Iga is not only a great champion but an unbelievable person.

“She was one of the first who really helped the Ukrainian people, she was a huge help. So for sure it’s not easy to play someone that you share a lot of good moments. Not easy for her either but I’m really proud I could win this one.”

England’s Euro 2024 qualifier against Ukraine in September will be played in the Polish city of Wroclaw.

Gareth Southgate’s men have enjoyed a 100 per cent start to European Championship qualification, with four wins from their four Group C matches.

England’s next qualifier is on September 9 away to Ukraine, who have been forced to host matches away from their homeland since Russia’s invasion in February 2022.

The Ukrainian Association of Football has confirmed that the match will be held in Poland at the 45,000-capacity Tarczynski Arena in Wroclaw.

They held last year’s Nations League games in Poland – two in Lodz, one in Krakow – and played June’s match at home to Malta in Trnava, Slovakia.

The Austrian cities of Vienna and Klagenfurt had been reportedly considered as host cities for the match against England.

Ellen White will be sad to see several talented Spain players miss the Women's World Cup over a dispute with the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and head coach Jorge Vilda. 

Last September, 15 Spain players pledged to resign from the national team unless Vilda was dismissed, claiming his tenure was having a negative impact on their "emotional state".

The RFEF stood by Vilda, who has coached La Roja since 2015 but has failed to take the side beyond the last eight of three major tournaments, and just three of the players involved in the dispute have made the trip to Australia and New Zealand.

Barcelona duo Mariona Caldentey and Aitana Bonmati – as well as Manchester United's Ona Batlle – have been recalled by Vilda, but 12 others remain frozen out.

Speaking at the launch of Pixel FC, a collective of dedicated women's football creators helping to close the visibility gap within women's football, White lamented their absence and said players' conditions need to be discussed.

"I think it's important to have those conversations," England's record goalscorer said. "I can't say what side [I would be on] because I'm not 100 per cent sure on everything, but I think it's really important.

"To be honest, it's really sad that we haven't got some of the best players in the world playing for their nation because of a number of different reasons. 

"I think that's really sad. In the World Cup, you should see the best players on show, so I feel really disappointed and sad for them. 

"I'm hoping that as time goes on and the conversations are had, those grievances are heard and they are able to continue to play for their country in the manner in which they want to."

France were also impacted by a player revolt earlier this year, with the withdrawal of captain Wendie Renard influential in Les Bleues' decision to part company with coach Corrine Diacre.

Former Saudi Arabia boss Herve Renard has since taken over and recalled the Lyon defender, and White hopes that move has had the desired effect on France's squad.

"Well, obviously, they've now brought in the new manager, so I'm hoping that's galvanised the squad and brought more excitement," she said. 

"These conversations need to happen for change to happen, and I'm hoping that they keep pushing for the change that they want.

"But the new manager has come in, and the players that originally said they wouldn't join the squad have now rejoined the squad, so I'm hoping it's moving in the right direction.

"I can't speak for the players, but I'm hoping that they feel comfortable enough to play for their nation and the conversations are really important to have."

Two appeals concerning the finish of the Pretty Polly Stakes at the Curragh have both been dismissed by the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board.

The Group One contest produced a messy conclusion as the George Boughey-trained winner Via Sistina drifted across the track in the final furlong, impeding the placed horses in winning by two lengths under Jamie Spencer.

Ben and Sir Martyn Arbib, who own Hughie Morrison’s second-placed Stay Alert, appealed against the raceday stewards’ decision not to revise the placings, but the IHRB dismissed that claim.

Spencer was given a six-day ban for his ride, with the jockey asking the IHRB appeals panel to reconsider the severity of the suspension.

However, that was also dismissed with Spencer ruled out on July 15, 17-20 and 22.

The suspension means he misses the ride aboard Khaadem in Saturday’s July Cup, with Rob Hornby booked to ride the 80-1 Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes winner at Newmarket instead.

Daniel Ricciardo will make a shock return to Formula One at the Hungarian Grand Prix a week on Sunday.

The eight-time grand prix winner, who was axed by McLaren at the end of last year, will replace Nyck de Vries at Red Bull’s junior team AlphaTauri for the rest of the year.

Rookie De Vries was hired by AlphaTauri at the beginning of this season but he has been dropped after only 10 races, paving the way for Ricciardo’s sudden comeback.

The 34-year-old Ricciardo’s career looked to be all but over after he was deemed surplus to requirements by McLaren following two underwhelming seasons with the British team.

Ricciardo failed to land a seat for the 2023 campaign and instead elected to return to Red Bull – the team at which he won seven grands prix – as a reserve driver.

Ricciardo got his first taste of this season’s Red Bull during a tyre test at Silverstone on Tuesday – 48 hours after the British Grand Prix in which De Vries finished 17th and last.

Given Sergio Perez’s torrid run of form, which has seen him fall 99 points adrift of team-mate Max Verstappen in the world championship, AlphaTauri’s move to hire Ricciardo will fuel speculation that the Australian could land a seat back at Red Bull.

“I’m stoked to be back on track with the Red Bull family,” said Ricciardo.

AlphaTauri team principal Franz Tost said: “I’m very pleased to welcome Daniel back into the team.

“There’s no doubt about his driving skill, and he already knows many of us, so his integration will be easy and straightforward.

“The team will also profit a lot from his experience, as he is an eight-time Formula One grand prix winner.

“I would like to thank Nyck for his valuable contribution during his time with Scuderia AlphaTauri, and I wish him all the best for the future.”

Ricciardo started his F1 career with HRT Racing in 2011 before he joined AlphaTauri, then called Toro Rosso, in 2012. Ricciardo was promoted to Red Bull two years later – winning three times and out-scoring four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel.

The Australian took a surprise decision to join Renault in 2019, but after two years with the French team – claiming two podium finishes – he switched to McLaren. However, bar victory at the 2021 Italian Grand Prix, Ricciardo underperformed and was replaced by countryman Oscar Piastri.

However, Ricciardo has been at a number of races this season and is regarded as one of the grid’s most popular drivers, particularly in America where the sport is booming thanks to the success of Netflix’s Drive to Survive series.

For De Vries, 28, the writing appeared to be on the wall after ruthless Red Bull motorsport adviser Helmut Marko recently said Red Bull team principal Christian Horner was right to have questioned why he was signed.

The Dutch driver crashed on multiple occasions and failed to score a single point with a best finish of 12th at the Monaco Grand Prix in May.

Home favourites Richie Ramsay and Robert MacIntyre are relishing the chance to make immediate amends for a missed opportunity in a star-studded Genesis Scottish Open.

The Scottish pair were both in contention to win in Denmark last week, with Ramsay finishing a shot outside the eventual play-off after hitting his approach to the last into the water and making a double bogey.

MacIntyre held a two-shot lead at the turn but ran up a triple-bogey seven on the 13th after failing to move his second shot from waist-high rough and then having to take a penalty drop.

But after sharing a car to the airport on Sunday evening, MacIntyre and Ramsay were also singing from the same hymn-sheet in terms of focusing on the positives ahead of a £7million event on home soil which boasts eight of the world’s top 10.

“The past week was probably the best golf I’ve played in a long, long time,” MacIntyre said at the Renaissance Club.

“I had so much control of the golf ball. For 71 holes I was in absolute cruise control. When I sit back and look at it, for the first 12 holes (on Sunday) I played golf perfectly. I didn’t put a foot wrong.

“On 13 I hit a good shot, flushed it, but just pulled it 10 yards. My natural shape is a draw and with the wind off the left, it was curving the wrong direction.

“But my head’s in a good place. I feel like you’ve got to take a couple of punches before you can hold a trophy. OK we had such a good chance to win, but it was all preparation for these two weeks.

“I shared a car with Richie going to the airport on Sunday night and he was on the phone speaking to his family and friends, I was getting phone calls from my manager and I was hanging up.

“I wasn’t speaking to anybody, I wasn’t in the right frame of mind. Richie has been out here a lot longer than me. He was a bit calm and chatting away. Once he was on the phone calls, I sat in a huff in the front seat.

“I was sitting there in absolute silence thinking to myself, ‘What just went wrong? Why has it went wrong?’… But I’m here now and last week is last week.

“Once I spoke to people they just assured me that’s not going to be the last hiccup I’m going to have on the journey. It’s going to happen again. But if you keep putting yourself in positions like Kenya, Korea, last week, I can’t not lift a trophy at some point.

“I was one step shy last week and what better time to correct the wrong than one of these next two (Scottish Open or Open Championship)?”

Ramsay, who also double-bogeyed the 72nd hole of last year’s British Masters at The Belfry when needing a par to claim the clubhouse lead, promised to keep “shooting for the stars” when in contention.

“It hurt to lose,” Ramsay said. “Ever since I was a little kid I hate losing but it’s part and parcel of the journey these days and only makes you stronger and more determined to get a win.

“I spoke to my brother this morning and he said you’d have a problem if you weren’t putting yourself in that position and I took that on board and realised that the problem is not that I hit a bad shot at the wrong time, the problem would be if I wasn’t putting myself in that position.

“I mean, I was annoyed I didn’t win but for me, I didn’t do anything wrong. The shot I hit at The Belfry was because I was indecisive. I didn’t make a clear decision and that’s on me.

“That’s why it hurt a lot more but on this one last week, my viewpoint is that you’ve got to hit a great shot down the stretch to win a tournament.

“There’s an opportunity here. If you don’t take it, you’re going to regret it. I don’t regret taking it, because if I pulled it off, I feel that I left myself in a good position to get up and down or two-putt, and you win a tournament.

“You kind of shoot for the stars and I will hit one of those stars again sooner or later.”

World number four Jessica Pegula crashed out of Wimbledon after an untimely suspension of play helped shift the momentum in her surprise quarter-final defeat to Marketa Vondrousova.

The American looked poised to progress to the maiden grand slam singles semi-final of her career having overturned a one-set deficit to lead 3-1 in the decider.

But, due to forecasted rain, the contest was halted for around 23 minutes to allow the roof on Court One to be closed and 2019 French Open finalist Vondrousova returned to win five of the next six games to progress 6-4 2-6 6-4.

The Czech world number 42, who is enjoying her best run at the All England Club, will take on either world number one Iga Swiatek or Elina Svitolina for a place in the final.

“I don’t know what happened,” she said. “It’s an amazing feeling, I cannot believe it.”

Asked how much closing the roof helped her, she replied: “A lot actually. I never played on court number one under the roof. It’s amazing.

“I just wanted to stay as long as I could and I fought until the end. She was pushing me to the edge so I am just so proud of my game.”

Ons Jabeur has vowed to stick to her plan as she targets Wimbledon revenge over Elena Rybakina.

The pair meet in the quarter-final on Wednesday in a rematch of last year’s final where Jabeur’s heart was broken by a three-set defeat.

The Tunisian has come back 12 months later and looked every inch a possible champion as she has coasted into the last eight.

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She knows this is a step up in quality and accepts she will have to do things she does not enjoy against Rybakina.

The sixth seed said: “My priority is really to stick 100 per cent to the plan that my coach will give me, and try to even do things that I might not like on the court, play more freely, just think about each point and not the results.

“I think you have a plan tactically, mentally also. Sometimes playing someone like Elena, who serves really well, it can be frustrating.

“Me, I would get angry, but I’ll try to accept the fact that she serves so good and try to return good and see what I can do there.”

Jabeur admits that it took her a couple of weeks to get over last year’s final but takes a holistic view of the defeat.

“I think the first one or two weeks I thought about it a lot,” she said.

“It was very painful. The good thing about it is I know I gave it everything.

“I’m someone that believes that it wasn’t meant to be, so I cannot force it more than it should be.

“I’m glad that I have this belief. I believe in destiny. It wasn’t supposed to be that year.

“Maybe greater things are coming after that final. I definitely will learn a lot from it.

“Obviously the next match is completely different. It’s a quarter-final. It’s a completely different position. I’m going to do my best.

“The most important thing is that I give 100 per cent and I try not to regret anything.”

Rybakina has barely broken sweat on her way to the last eight, though did admit she felt nervous at the start of the competition.

She is now through that and wants to continue in calmer waters.

“Now I’m feeling much better and more confident coming and playing on Centre Court,” she said. “It is different from the first round.

“I think it was just overall the atmosphere and the nerves to play the first match to get used to the grass, just to play some matches here.

“I think now mentally I’m much better. Physically also good now. Yeah, hopefully I just continue like this.”

England captain Heather Knight insists the pressure is all on Australia after the home side’s fightback in the Women’s Ashes.

Australia appeared to be cruising towards a successful Ashes defence after winning the solitary Test and the opening ODI to take a 6-0 lead in the multi-format series.

But England have reduced the deficit to two points after winning back-to-back T20 games and head into the three-match one-day international series with renewed confidence of upsetting the world’s number one women’s side.

“We had to win five games on the trot to win the Ashes so I guess the pressure was on us as we were massive underdogs at that point,” Knight said ahead of Wednesday’s opening ODI in Bristol.

“But the pressure’s all on them now, they’ve only got to win one game (to retain the Ashes). If we can keep doing what we’re doing, keep ramping up that pressure a little bit.

“We’re still the underdogs in the context of the whole series. I feel like the pressure’s not massively on us.”

Test stars Tammy Beaumont and Lauren Filer have returned to the England squad with Knight promising that her side will continue to “disrupt” Australia.

Beaumont became England’s first Test double centurion while Filer touched speeds in excess of 75 miles per hour at Trent Bridge to live up to her reputation as the fastest female bowler in the country.

“We see her (Filer) as someone who can disrupt a bit and bowl in those middle overs and try to take wickets,” Knight said.

“She’s obviously played a lot at Bristol as well, knows the ground well and is really exciting.

“In the past, we might have got a bit down and had the ‘here we go again’ thing against the Aussies, but there’s a real belief in that room that we can match this cricket team.

“We’ve always seen ourselves as the disrupters in this series, having to do things differently to beat this really good team.

“I’m sure they’ll come at us hard but our job is to keep trying to disrupt, keep trying to put them under pressure and bring our best cricket.”

England’s men’s team have kept their own Ashes hopes alive by winning at Headingley since the women’s side wrapped up a 2-1 T20 series win on Saturday.

That feel-good factor in English cricket is something Knight is keen to tap into during the remaining ODI games at Bristol, Southampton and Taunton.

She said: “It was great to see the guys win. I think they have actually been quite parallel series – they obviously lost the first two games which were very close as well.

“There’s a real buzz around the country, which is awesome, that’s what Ashes series can do. We’re buzzing off the amount of people that have come to watch us.

“We’re just trying to keep the momentum going and if the boys can keep doing well and we can keep doing well then maybe we can both have the great escape. Time will tell.”

Australia all-rounder Tahlia McGrath says the visitors are not panicking after successive defeats.

McGrath said: “It was disappointing not to have played the cricket we would have liked, right through the T20 aspect.

“But we’ve had some good discussions and we’re still pretty confident. We’re here to win the Ashes and we’ve still got our noses in front. There’s no panic stations.”

Asked if just retaining the Ashes with an 8-8 draw would be enough for Australia, McGrath said: “I don’t think so. We want to win every game of cricket.

“First and foremost we want to retain the Ashes and doing that eight-all doesn’t sound the same as winning them outright.”

Aberdeen Women have appointed Clinton Lancaster as their new manager.

The former Watford Women head coach is the Dons’ first ever full-time women’s team boss.

Director of football Steven Gunn told Aberdeen’s official website that the appointment of Clinton is an important milestone.

He said: “After an extensive recruitment process, we are delighted that Clinton is joining Aberdeen FC as our first ever full-time women’s team manager.

“Clinton is an experienced and qualified coach, manager and teacher who has been passionate and excited about the opportunity to drive the women’s game forward at our club.

“Having a wealth of experience in women’s and girl’s football, and player development, Clinton has enjoyed promotions with both Crystal Palace and Watford in his previous roles.

“We feel he has all the qualities required to build on the good work that has already been undertaken at Aberdeen FC over the last four seasons.”

Lancaster is looking forward to leading Aberdeen into a new era.

He said: “When I spoke to the club, I could really see their vision for the team, and the wider project of developing the women’s football programme here at Aberdeen.

“I can see where the club wants to position itself going forward and that is something I was excited to be a part of.

“Despite being based down south, I am aware of the size of this club, and of course of the women’s league in Scotland.

“It’s a really competitive league and ultimately, we want to continue to build on the great work carried out in recent seasons, but the aim is to become more competitive and challenge ourselves to deliver success.”

Kyogo Furuhashi aims to keep Celtic fans smiling as he prepares for the new season after recently signing a new deal.

After scoring 54 goals in 83 appearances for the Hoops since his arrival from Vissel Kobe in July 2021, the 28-year-old signed a new four-year contract with the Parkhead club earlier in the month.

Furuhashi’s popularity among the Celtic support increased further last season as he helped the Hoops win the domestic treble, and the Japan forward expressed his gratitude for the support, telling the club’s official website: “From children to elderly people, a lot of people are cheering and supporting us.

“Once I step outside of the house and go into the city, many people talk to me, and at the stadium, all the supporters are cheering us from the bottom of their hearts.

“And because they are there, we can compete because I want to see their smiles. I work hard to get the win and they are very important to me.”

On his new deal under “brilliant” new boss Brendan Rodgers, he said: “I’m really delighted, to be honest. I’m happy that it shows how much they value me and want me.

“For the team and for the people who support us, and also for myself, I will continue to improve and to deliver success.”

Rodgers has taken over from Ange Postecoglou who departed for Tottenham at the end of the 2022-23 season.

Following a training camp in Portugal, the Northern Irishman – in his second spell as Hoops boss – will take Celtic to Japan, which will be a homecoming for Furuhashi and Celtic team-mates Reo Hatate, Tomoki Iwata, Yuki Kobayashi and Daizen Maeda.

The Scottish champions will play two games in Japan – against Yokohama F Marinos on July 19 and Gamba Osaka on July 22 and Furuhashi said: “I’m really excited about it and excited to play in front of Japanese fans.

“Many players from Celtic are going so I want them (Japanese fans) to know about us and become our fans.

“Also, many people from Scotland are coming down and I want them to enjoy Japanese culture too.

“They will be two tough games but if we can deliver what we are working and believing in, then they will be good games and the good results will follow, and we will play with high confidence in ourselves.”

As for working under a new Celtic boss, Furuhashi said: “He’s a brilliant manager.

“I’m happy to work with him and I would like to return the favour by playing well to get success.

“We need to work hard together to get as many wins as possible. There will be the Champions League as well so we need to prepare well in order to have good results this season.”