Tour de France Crash Creates Havoc, Sidelines Two From U.S.

Lance Armstrong lost his shirt after the second stage of the Tour de France, but at least he’s still in the race.

Some of the top riders were caught behind a crash on an ocean causeway Monday, helping Tom Steels of Belgium win the stage at Saint-Nazaire. Estonia’s Jaan Kirsipuu was second and took the leader’s yellow jersey from Armstrong.

American Jonathan Vaughters broke his chin in the crash and withdrew, as did Marc Wauters. The spill happened on the Passage du Gois, which connects a small island to the mainland in the coastal Atlantic Vendee region. The strip of land is no more than two car-lengths wide and is closed during high tide.

Favorites such as Alex Zulle, Michael Boogerd and Ivan Gotti lost valuable minutes when they were behind the 10-rider crash.

Armstrong, recovering from testicular cancer, is second overall and in excellent position.

“I just want to stay out of trouble until the real race begins on Sunday with the time trial,” he said.

Tennis

Disappointed that he didn’t win a title at Wimbledon this year after mixed doubles teammate Steffi Graf withdrew to rest an injury and concentrate on singles before their semifinal match, John McEnroe said he probably has played his final match at Wimbledon.

U.S. Davis Cup captain Tom Gullickson picked Alex O’Brien to complete a roster that includes Pete Sampras, Jim Courier and Todd Martin. O’Brien, of Amarillo, Texas, has eight doubles titles and will be making his third Davis Cup appearance when the U.S. faces Australia at Brookline, Mass., July 16-18.

In his professional debut, James Blake, 19, who reached the NCAA final as a sophomore at Harvard this spring, upset former Wimbledon finalist MaliVai Washington, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4, in the Hall of Fame Championships at Newport, R.I.

Golf

Garland Dempsey, the 51-year-old caddie who collapsed Saturday during the third round of the PGA Tour’s Western Open, was upgraded to guarded but stable condition, said Karen Callahan, the health supervisor at Palos Community Hospital at Lemont, Ill.

Juli Inkster and Kelly Robbins teamed to win both of their matches and give the United States a 3-1 lead over Canada in the Nations’ Cup women’s golf tournament at Toronto. Meg Mallon and Rosie Jones had the Americans’ other victory.

Miscellany

Houston Rocket Coach Rudy Tomjanovich is recovering from “extreme physical exhaustion” and withdrew as coach of the U.S. men’s basketball team that will participate in an Olympic qualifying tournament next month. Larry Brown of the Philadelphia 76ers will replace Tomjanovich. . . . Calgary re-signed unrestricted free-agent defenseman Steve Smith to a two-year contract. Smith, 36, came out of retirement to play for the Flames last season.

American record-holder Mark Crear ran 12.98 seconds in the 110-meter hurdles, defeating world record-holder Colin Jackson of Britain by 0.26 seconds at an IAAF track and field meet at Zagreb, Croatia. . . . Maurice Greene and Ato Boldon, the hottest sprinters on the IAAF circuit, expressed support for anti-drug measures in their sport while getting ready for a meet in Rome. . . . Swimmer Mark Warkentin won two gold medals and broke the University Games record for the men’s 800-meter freestyle by nearly four seconds with a time of eight minutes 0.81 seconds at Palma de Mallorca, Balearic Islands.

The third-place team in Asian qualifying will play a team from Europe for the final berth in the 2002 World Cup, averting a threatened boycott by the Asians, a member of FIFA’s executive committee said. . . . Martin Dahlin, a striker on Sweden’s soccer team and for several European clubs, retired because of a back injury. . . . Former New York Jet defensive end Mark Gastineau surrendered at a Queens, N.Y., station house and was arrested for violating an order of protection in an ongoing domestic dispute with his wife, police said.

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Tour de France

A look at Monday’s second stage:

* Stage: A 109-mile ride from Challans to Saint-Nazaire in France’s Vendee region along the Atlantic coast.

* Stage winner: Tom Steels of Belgium in a final sprint. He was timed in 3 hours 45 minutes 32 seconds.

* Others: Jaan Kirsipuu of Estonia finished second and Mario Cipollini of Italy was third. American George Hincapie placed sixth. The stage was marked by a 10-rider crash on an ocean causeway, which wrought havoc on riders and prompted American Jonathan Vaughters to abandon the race. Another rider, Marc Wauters, also retired because of injuries.

* Overall: Kirsipuu took the lead over Lance Armstrong, winner of Saturday’s prologue. Armstrong is second.

* Next stage: Nantes to Laval, 121 miles.