• ‘It’s a harsh decision’, says Ineos chief Dave Brailsford
Geraint Thomas’s hopes of defending his Tour de France title were dealt a blow when his Ineos road captain, Luke Rowe, was thrown out of the race, together with his Jumbo Visma counterpart Tony Martin, after the pair had an altercation towards the end of stage 17.
Late in the stage, at the foot of the Col de la Sentinelle, Martin appeared to block Rowe’s path, almost forcing him into a ditch. An angry Rowe then rode alongside the German, pushed him in the face and in turn attempted to force him off the road.
Written by Jeremy Whittle
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/jul/24/tour-de-france-matteo-trentin-stage-17-julian-alaphilippe under the title “Luke Rowe and Tony Martin disqualified after altercation on stage 17”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
