A protest by local farmers brought stage 16 of the Tour de France to a halt on Tuesday as French and British media said bales of hay were thrown on to the road on the route from Carcassonne to Bagneres-de-Luchon.
Cycling teams and French media said police used tear gas to disperse the protesters but it ended up blowing in the face of the riders, which led to the race being stopped at the 187 km-to-go point.
The race continued after the brief hiatus.
Eager to win gold at Asian Games, says Rupinder Pal Singh
Boosted by a strong comeback in the three-match series against New Zealand last week, ace drag-flicker Rupinder Pal Singh says the Indian hockey team is eager to carry forward the momentum into the upcoming Asian Games and win the gold medal.
"Personally for me, playing against a quality team like New Zealand who won the silver medal at the Commonwealth Games was very important. Since I had missed out all the action during the Champions Trophy, I had to find my rhythm ahead of the Asian Games in Jakarta," Rupinder said.
The Commonwealth Games in April was Rupinder's last appearance for the Indian team at a major International event. A hamstring injury during the quadrennial event meant that he had to be rested for the Champions Trophy where the team finished runners up.
While the team was up against top teams in the world, Rupinder had to remain in the national camp and work on his fitness.
"It is frustrating for any player to be watching the team play on TV but it was critical for me to undergo rehab in order to be match-fit and available for the Asian Games selections," Rupinder expressed after the 3-0 series win against New Zealand.
In order to gain momentum again, Rupinder appeared in four practice matches against Bangladesh early this month where he scored 10 goals through penalty corners and played two practice matches against South Korea where he scored one goal.
Vicky Chandhok re-elected President of FIA APRC Working Group
India's Vicky Chandhok was unanimously re-elected President of the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship Working Group for a second two-year term at the annual meeting in Johor, Malaysia.
“It was a bit of a surprise that I was unanimously requested to continue as President for another term. Rallying continues its upward trend in the region and I am honoured to continue what we started two years ago. Our focus will be on expanding to new regions and continue growing the sport at the grass root level,” said Chandhok, who is also a former FMSCI President.
Representatives from Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and Indonesia among others attend the meeting and the elections held on Monday.
Also present was Wayne Christie, President of the FIA Rally Commission to share FIA's thoughts on the future of rallying and to also understand the challenges faced by the APRC.
The members present felt that since the APRC was going through many challenges, it needed continuity at the helm, especially with the plans afoot to meet manufacturers in Japan and China.
Deviating from the norms, they requested outgoing Chandhok who was not a candidate for the post to accept the Presidency for another term.
Takahito Sugita (Japan) will serve as the Vice-President. Stalwarts Tengku Shaharin Abu Bakar (Malaysia) and Willard Martin (New Zealand) will serve on the executive committee along with Sugita and Chandhok.