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CYCLING

105-year-old French cyclist breaks world record

A 105-year-old French cyclist set a new one-hour record for his age Wednesday -- although Robert Marchand was already in a class all of his own.

105-year-old French cyclist breaks world record
Photo: AFP

Marchand pedalled for 22.547 kilometres (14.01 miles) in the national velodrome in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines west of Paris to the cheers of hundreds of spectators — and when he had finished he said he could have gone faster.

“I didn't see the sign saying there were 10 minutes to go, otherwise I would have speeded up,” the wiry champion told a scrum of reporters who surrounded him afterwards.

Marchand dismounted and although his coach put his arm around him, he walked off the track without difficulty.

When a reporter asked if he was going to do another lap, he said emphatically: “No!”

“I feel emotional — and I'm even asking myself if all this is real!” said Marchand, who was born in 1911, three years before World War I began.

Age is slowing him though — three years ago he managed to ride 26.927 km in one hour, a record for someone aged over 100.

There is no known mark for someone of 105, so Marchand truly blazed a trail on Wednesday.

The former national gymnastics champion, boxer and firefighter attributes his enduring fitness to a healthy diet — and lots of exercise.

“I've done sport all my life, eaten loads of fruit and vegetables, not too much coffee,” he said before the record attempt.

“I do between 10 and 20 kilometres a day (cycling), but I don't train outside. I'm afraid I might catch flu!”

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CYCLING

Swiss rider dies after fall into ravine on Tour of Switzerland

Swiss rider Gino Maeder has died from the injuries he sustained when he plunged into a ravine during a stage of the Tour of Switzerland, his team Bahrain-Victorious said on Friday.

Swiss rider dies after fall into ravine on Tour of Switzerland

Maeder, 26, fell during a high-speed descent on the fifth stage between Fiesch and La Punt on Thursday, after an exhausting day marked by three ascents over 2,000 metres altitude.

He had been found “lifeless in the water” of a ravine below the road, “immediately resuscitated then transported to the hospital in Chur by air”, organisers said.

But the next day, “Gino lost his battle to recover from the serious injuries he sustained,” Bahrain-Victorious said in a statement.

“It is with deep sadness and heavy hearts that we must announce the passing of Gino Mäder,” his team wrote in a statement.

“On Friday June 16th, following a very serious fall during the fifth stage of the Tour de Suisse, Gino lost his fight to recover from the serious injuries he had suffered. Our entire team is devastated by this tragic accident, and our thoughts and prayers are with Gino’s family and loved ones at this incredibly difficult time.”

“Despite the best efforts of the phenomenal staff at Chur hospital, Gino couldn’t make it through this, his final and biggest challenge, and at 11:30am we said goodbye to one of the shining lights of our team,” the team said in a statement.

Maeder had enjoyed a strong start to the season, finishing fifth in the Paris-Nice race.

American rider Magnus Sheffield also fell on the same descent from Albula, during the most difficult stage of the race with multiple climbs. The Ineos-Grenadiers rider was hospitalised with “bruises and concussion,” organisers said.

On Thursday, world champion Remco Evenepoel criticised the decision to compete on such a dangerous road.

“While a summit finish would have been perfectly possible, it wasn’t a good decision to let us finish down this dangerous descent,” the Belgian wrote on Twitter.

“As riders, we should also think about the risks we take going down a mountain.”

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