Sports weekend

The latest from cycling and football

Florin Orban, 24.07.2020, 13:45

German
cyclist Nikodemus Holler Thursday night won the preliminary stage of the 10th
edition of Sibiu Cycling Tour, held in the town’s historical center. The race
was two and a half kilometres long. Its starting and finish points were in the
town’s Grand Square. Two Polish cyclists, Kacper Walkowiak and Wojciech Sykala,
followed suit throughout the race. The Romanian Iustin-Ioan Văidian, came in
8th at the end of the race. We recall Vaidian is a regular of the national team
and his timing was the best among the Romanian competitors. The first stage of
the 183 kilometre-long race is held on Friday. The route is Sibiu – Sălişte -
Dobârca – Cristian – Cisnădie – Bâlea Lac.

The
national absolute rally champion, Simone Tempestini, this coming weekend will
represent Romania in the first leg of the European Rally Championship, to be
held in Italy’s capital city Rome. Simone will take the start driving a Skoda
Fabia R5. His co-pilot will be Sergiu Itu. Tempestini and Itu last took part in
Rally di Roma Capitale in the 2017 season. Both competitors were 22 back then,
and came in 5th overall. The first special race will be held on
Saturday. The Rally in Rome has 15 events, with 197 rally kilometers all told.

In news from football, this past Thursday, Mircea Lucescu was appointed head
coach of Ukrainian football team Dinamo Kyiv, according to a message posted on
the club’s official site. We recall Lucescu was for many years head-coach of another Ukrainian team, Shakhtar Donetsk. Lucescu signed a two-year contract,
with the option for a one-year extension. Lucescu was also head-coach for the
national team of Turkey, over August 2017 and February 2019.

The
reported COVID-19 infections as of late have made the ongoing domestic football championship
look a little bit complicated. Group 1 runner-up team CFR Cluj’s head-coach Dan
Petrescu tested positive for COVID-19, and so did several other footballers and
members of the club’s technical staff. Two staff members of top-of-the-table
team Universitatea Craiova also tested positive for COVID-19, while the
footballers tested negative. In Group 1 on Saturday, Gaz Metan Medias play a
home game against FCSB. In Group 2, almost all footballers of Dinamo’s pool of
regulars tested positive, so they have been placed in quarantine.

(Translation by Eugen Nasta)