American Floyd Landis sealed his first Tour de France triumph after Sunday's 20th and last stage won by Norway's Thor Hushovd on the Champs-Elysees.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday night arrived in Paris on the first leg of his three-nation tour during which he will hold talks with French President Francois Hollande and meet business leaders.
A look at the main Tour de France contenders ahead of Saturday's first stage, a 14-km individual time trial in Duesseldorf:
Novak Djokovic was stunned 7-6(4), 6-2 by Matteo Berrettini in the Qatar Open first round on Tuesday as the Italian enjoyed his first win over the former world number one.
India's National Security Advisor Ajit Doval held bilateral talks with US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and chaired a conclave of top global intelligence chiefs focusing on strengthening cooperation in confronting various security challenges including terrorism and threats posed by emerging technologies. The meeting also focused on security in the Indo-Pacific region, cooperation to counter terror funding and money laundering, and issues relating to extradition and immigration.
Chris Froome has been so strong on this year's Tour de France that at times he appears to have been toying with his rivals.
Novak Djokovic's bid for a 100th ATP Tour title gained momentum on Thursday
Former champion Naomi Osaka was sent packing from Indian Wells after losing in straight sets to Colombia's Camila Osorio.
Reigning Asian champion Jyothi Yarraji broke her own national record twice in the 60m hurdles event at the Elite Indoor Meeting in Nantes, France, clocking 8.04 seconds in the final. Meanwhile, Tejas Shirse won bronze in the men's 60m hurdles with a time of 7.68 seconds.
Stage eight winner Nans Peters had long crossed the line when fellow Frenchman Thibaut Pinot's ordeal ended after the Groupama-FDJ rider, highly fancied to become the first local winner of the race in 35 years, had been dropped in the second ascent of the 141-km trek through the Pyrenees.
The chances of seven-times winner Lance Armstrong riding in next year's Tour de France are 50-50, his Astana team manager Johan Bruyneel said on Wednesday. Tour de France organisers also appeared fairly indifferent over the prospect of Armstrong opting out of the race as they presented next year's route.
Chris Froome got a brutal reminder of the unpredictable nature of the Tour de France when he crashed to the ground in Sunday's second stage, recovering to finish with torn shorts as German Marcel Kittel powered to victory at the end of a huge sprint.
British cycling success this year has been rewarded with the selection of north of England county Yorkshire to host the start of the 2014 Tour de France.
Rishabh Pant has been nominated for the prestigious Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award.
The ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 Trophy Tour kicked off in spectacular style, launching 120,000 feet above the Earth.
Rediff.com brings you the wild and colourful fans that uplift the mood of the cyclists over the gruelling course.
'The rioters do not want to burn cars -- they want to be heard,' says Professor Narayanaswami Ranganathan.
Djokovic tamed local favourite Rinky Hijikata 6-3, 6-3 in what was the top seeded Serbian's first tour-level singles match since October.
'It's a big emotion because I've won on the Tour. I haven't won (a race) since the start of the season. It's great to make it. It was tough but I'm super happy to have won.'
Seven-times champion Lance Armstrong will come out of retirement and compete in next year's Tour de France, the cycling magazine VeloNews reported on Monday. Velonews cited sources on its website as saying that Armstrong, 36, would compete in the Amgen Tour of California, Paris-Nice, the Tour de Georgia, the Dauphine-Libere and the Tour de France.
Team Ineos's Luke Rowe and Lotto Jumbo-Visma's Tony Martin were both kicked out of the race following an altercation, just under 14 kilometres from the finish.
The Indian government does not track the number of undocumented Indian immigrants residing in the US. Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh, in a written response to a query in the Rajya Sabha, said these immigrants have "legally exited India" but have either overstayed their visa validity, or have entered the US illegally or without valid documents. The response comes at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on a two-day visit to the US, during which he will hold a bilateral meeting with President Trump. The two leaders are likely to discuss India-US cooperation in sectors like trade, investment, energy, defense, technology and immigration.
Battered and bruised, the Tour de France begins the 17th stage on Thursday minus its leader.
The American cyclist will not participate in any race in France till the end of his disciplinary hearing.
Tour de France winner Floyd Landis has tested positive for the male sex hormone testosterone.
The American became the fifth person to win the prestigious event five times and also the second to have five straight Tour victories to his credit.
The overall standings remained unchanged at the top with Thomas leading defending champion Froome by one minute 39 seconds and Dutchman Tom Dumoulin by 1:50.
During this summer, Indian travel buffs are opting for destinations that provide an escape from the ominous heat, along with coastal regions within the country and countries offering visa-free travel.
One fact is irrefutable: Nepal's recent political history tells us that the route to a return of monarchy cannot go through India despite friends in high places, asserts Aditi Phadnis.
Chris Froome and Alberto Contador were back in control of the Tour de France, hurting their main rivals in a hectic second stage won by German Andre Greipel on Sunday.
Tour de France winners since the event was first staged in 1903.
Chris Froome took another big step towards a third Tour de France title when he dropped his main rivals in the finale of the 17th stage, a 184-km mountain trek won by Russian Ilnur Zakarin on Wednesday.
While the yellow jersey positions hardly moved, Briton Bradley Wiggins being content with staying out of trouble to retain his second place - seven seconds behind.
Froome in control as Contador drifts, Van Garderen out of Tour de France.
D Gukesh and R Praggnanadhaa played out their eighth draw in as many games at the Sinquefield Cup.
World champion D Gukesh will take on Fabiano Caruana of the United States in the two-game quarter-final after the latter picked the Indian in a unique format typical of Freestyle Chess Grand Slam, in Hamburg, Germany.
How many participate in Tour de France?
Cadel Evans became the first Australian to win the Tour de France after Briton Mark Cavendish took Sunday's final stage on the Champs Elysees for the third year in a row.
Alberto Contador has promised a more exciting Tour de France this year after Bradley Wiggins's Team Sky dominated all the way to the Champs-Elysees in the 2012 edition.
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