Tadej Pogacar missed out on a third Tour de France stage win in a row on Saturday but maintained his firm grip on the leader's yellow jersey at Luchon-Superbagneres.
The Slovenian star outsprinted Jonas Vingegaard to finish Stage 14 in second place behind Thymen Arensman who claimed a superb solo victory for Ineos Grenadiers, who spent the final 35km alone at the front.
It meant Pogacar increased his overall lead over Visma-Lease a Bike's Vingegaard by six seconds and gap between first and second now at 4 mins 17 secs.
The day belonged to Arensman, however, as the Dutchman went solo from the day's breakaway in the penultimate climb to the Col de Peyresourde (7.1km at 7.8 per cent) before his team car hit and knocked down a spectator amid the usual roadside chaos on the Tour.
Arensman never looked back and held firm on his way up to Superbagneres (12.4km at 7.3 per cent) as Vingegaard attacked several times in an attempt to drop Pogacar.
But the three-time champion did not flinch and easily beat his rival in the final metres to further cement his domination.
“It was a bit like yesterday. I can be really happy with how my legs are feeling today, “admitted two-time champion Vingegaard.
“In general, today was probably one of the hardest mountain stages I've ever done. It was a hard day, I think for everyone, so to do that performance at the end of such a day is nice.
“I actually expected Tadej to go on the last climb because on the second-to-last climb they sped up, like they wanted to go for the stage.
“Then when I realised he probably wouldn't try, I just decided to do it myself.”
Crossing the line in the mist at 1840m altitude, Arensman flung himself to the ground exhausted after taking a first win on this Tour for British team Ineos.
The 25-year-old produced a virtuoso climb amid suffocating packs of near hysterical fans who had waited all day for the peloton to pass.
“It's great for Thymen [to win] and great for the team, I'm super happy,” said the retiring Geraint Thomas is the oldest rider in this year's Tour and a teammate of debutant Arensman.
“It will relieve a bit of pressure [on the team], we have been there or thereabouts and it hasn't quite clicked, but we have certainly been trying all the time, so it's great to get the win.
“I am glad [to see the back of the Pyrenees]. I don't think I'll be riding much here again! I'll come here on holiday with a few drinks, but not riding.”
Double Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel – who started the day in third place, albeit 7 mins 24 secs behind Pogacar – saw his race come to an abrupt end.
The 25-year-old Belgian rider, who was third overall, struggled early on and pulled out on the day's first climb of the daunting 2180m altitude Tourmalet.
It was the first of four big mountains on the day's programme, including the final ascent to the ski resort of Superbagneres, which is more than 12 kilometres long.
After handing out bottles to fans, the time-trial world champion got off his bike and climbed into a car from his Soudal Quick-Step team, retiring from the race.
Evenepoel won the opening time trial of the Tour but had suffered in the Pyrenees. With his exit, Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) moves up to third in the overall standings with Oscar Onley (Team Picnic PostNL) fourth.
After three days in the Pyrenees the riders now have a hilly stage 15 over 169.3km from Muret to the medieval fortified town of Carcassonne.
General classification after Stage 14
- Tadej Pogacar (UAE Emirates-XRG) 50 hrs 40 mins 28 secs
- Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) +4mins 23 secs
- Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) +7mins 53 secs
- Oscar Onley (Picnic PostNL) +9mins 18 secs
- Kevin Vauquelin (Arkea-B&B Hotels) +10mins 21secs
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Men from Barca's class of 99
Crystal Palace - Frank de Boer
Everton - Ronald Koeman
Manchester City - Pep Guardiola
Manchester United - Jose Mourinho
Southampton - Mauricio Pellegrino
The biog
Name: James Mullan
Nationality: Irish
Family: Wife, Pom; and daughters Kate, 18, and Ciara, 13, who attend Jumeirah English Speaking School (JESS)
Favourite book or author: “That’s a really difficult question. I’m a big fan of Donna Tartt, The Secret History. I’d recommend that, go and have a read of that.”
Dream: “It would be to continue to have fun and to work with really interesting people, which I have been very fortunate to do for a lot of my life. I just enjoy working with very smart, fun people.”
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
LAST-16 FIXTURES
Sunday, January 20
3pm: Jordan v Vietnam at Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai
6pm: Thailand v China at Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
9pm: Iran v Oman at Mohamed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Monday, January 21
3pm: Japan v Saudi Arabia at Sharjah Stadium
6pm: Australia v Uzbekistan at Khalifa bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
9pm: UAE v Kyrgyzstan at Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Tuesday, January 22
5pm: South Korea v Bahrain at Rashid Stadium, Dubai
8pm: Qatar v Iraq at Al Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
MEDIEVIL%20(1998)
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The biog
Year of birth: 1988
Place of birth: Baghdad
Education: PhD student and co-researcher at Greifswald University, Germany
Hobbies: Ping Pong, swimming, reading
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
