Dutch rider Thymen Arensman won the Tour de France’s toughest stage after a long solo effort over mammoth climbs, and defending champion Tadej Pogacar increased his overall lead on Saturday.

Arensman, who rides for the Ineos-Grenadiers team, posted the biggest victory of his career. After crossing the finish line in the deep fog enveloping the ski resort of Superbagnères, Arensman lay exhausted on the road with his head in his hands.

“To be honest, I just wanted to experience the Tour, the biggest race in the world,” he said. “Now, to win a stage in my first Tour, and to do it this way, it’s unbelievable, crazy.”

He went solo with 23 miles left from a breakaway, and quickly opened a comfortable lead. He started the final ascent to Superbagnères, which is more than 7 miles long, on his own and resisted the return of the main contenders.

It was Arensman’s second Grand Tour stage win, having previously won a stage at the 2022 Spanish Vuelta.

As Arensman posed no threat to the overall standings, Pogacar and his teammates controlled the race from the back, with the yellow jersey holder and his main challenger, Jonas Vingegaard, trailing by around 3 minutes with 5 miles remaining.

Vingegaard tried a move with 2 1/2 miles left and Pogacar responded with ease. The two rivals then watched each other closely and Arensman crossed first at the summit, more than a minute ahead of the duo.

Having won the previous two stages in the Pyrenees, Pogacar settled for second place. He accelerated in the final section to gain more time on Vingegaard, who completed the stage podium.

Overall, Pogacar increased his lead over Vingegaard to 4 minutes, 13 seconds, with Florian Lipowitz in third place, 7:53 off the pace after Remco Evenepoel abandoned.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

JuJu Watkins, Kiki Rice, Flau’Jae Johnson and Azzi Fudd are four of 14 top women’s college basketball players who Unrivaled is signing to NIL deals, the league announced.

It’s the second consecutive year that the 3-on-3 league that was founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart has had name, image and likeness deals with college players. In it’s inaugural season, Unrivaled had deals with Paige Bueckers and Johnson.

Watkins, who plays for USC but is sidelined with an ACL injury, has also previously been involved with Unrivaled as an investor in its Series A funding round.

Other players signed include TCU’s Olivia Miles, and Lauren and Sienna Betts, Texas’ Madison Booker, Iowa State’s Audi Crooks, LSU’s MiLaysia Fulwiley, South Carolina Ta’Niya Latson and Michigan’s Syla Swords. The players range from sophomores to seniors.

NHL

The Winnipeg Jets locked up forward Gabriel Vilardi, signing the forward to a six-year extension worth $45 million.

Vilardi, 25, became a restricted free agent July 1 after completing a two-year, $6.88 million deal. He had career highs in 2024-25 with 27 goals, 34 assists, 61 points and 71 games.

The Jets acquired Vilardi in June 2023 in a trade that sent Pierre-Luc Dubois to the Kings. He has 90 goals and 85 assists in 270 career regular-season games in six seasons with the Kings and Winnipeg.

NBA

New Orleans Pelicans rookie Derik Queen is likely to miss at least the start of training camp after having surgery to repair a torn ligament in his left wrist.

Queen was hurt while playing in an NBA Summer League game. The Pelicans said he would be evaluated again in approximately 12 weeks, which would be after camps have begun.

SOCCER

Canadian midfielder Florianne Jourde, a USC alum, signed a deal with Paris Saint-Germain’s women’s team until the end of June 2028.

Jourde previously played with AS Monteuil de Laval in Canada before she joined the Trojans. Jourde featured at two U20 World Cups with Canada.

TENNIS

Sixth-ranked Zheng Qinwen of China underwent arthroscopic surgery on her right elbow after experiencing “persistent pain” for several months.

The 22-year-old Olympic champion, who lost in the first round at Wimbledon to Katerina Siniakova, said the surgery was a success.

“Over the past months, I’ve been dealing with persistent pain in my right elbow during training and matches. Despite trying various treatments to manage it, the discomfort never fully went away,” the right-handed player said in an Instagram post.

Zheng wrote she’ll be recovering over the “next few weeks and months.”

TRACK AND FIELD

The British government announced its support of London’s bid to host the 2029 athletics world championships.

London hosted the biannual premier track and field event in 2017 at the London Stadium, which also held the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2012 Olympic Games. The plan is to stage the 2029 worlds at the same venue.