Tour de France winner Vingegaard given hero’s welcome in Copenhagen
The Hindu
Jonas Vingegaard made a triumphant return to Denmark following his second successive Tour de France victory
Jonas Vingegaard made a triumphant return to Denmark on Wednesday following his second successive Tour de France victory, as thousands lined the streets to welcome him home.
“Vingegaard!, Vingegaard!, Vingegaard!” echoed from the crowd of tens of thousands gathered in the square outside Copenhagen’s city hall, just as they had a year earlier, when Vingegaard won his first Tour de France title.
“It’s still hard to understand, that I have won the Tour de France two years in a row,” he said during a speech at city hall.
“If someone had told me five years ago, I don’t think I would have believed it, or I know I wouldn’t have,” he added.
Many wore the Danish red and white, while others donned yellow shirts mirroring the jersey worn by the leader of the Tour de France.
Crowds also lined the streets to wave at Vingegaard as he enjoyed his second open-top parade wearing the famous jersey into Copenhagen after landing in a private jet.
The 26-year-old was the first Dane to win the iconic race since Bjarne Riis -- who later admitted to doping -- in 1996.
Asian Games champion Avinash Sable opened his season in the 3000m steeple chase with a silver in the Portland Track Festival, a World Athletics Continental Tour bronze event, in Oregon on Saturday. He clocked 8:21.85s. Asian champion Parul Chaudhary took the bronze in the women’s 3000m steeple chase in a season-best 9:31.38s. Former Asian bronze medallist Sanjivani Jadhav struck gold in the women’s 10,000m in 32:22.77s, a time which was a second off her personal best, while Seema was sixth in 32:55.91s.