SuperShorts: Tour de Tourmalet

If you think the people who set the course for the Tour de France are a pack of sadistic bastards, spare a thought for the riders back in 1910. Early that year, Alphonse Steines went to reconnoitre possible routes over Tourmalet - which the Tour hit overnight. Steines set off in a car, complete with chauffeur.

Four kilometres from the top of the Tourmalet pass, however, the car's path was blocked by an impassable wall of snow. Ignoring his chauffeur's pleas to head down the hill, Steines got out and plodded off upwards. By midnight, with no sign of him on the other side, search parties were sent out.

Next morning, his teeth chattering and his clothes in tatters, Steines reached the village of Bareges where, still shivering, he sent a telegram to the Tour's Paris HQ: "Tourmalet crossed. Perfectly usable. Excellent road."

Thanks to his fib about the condition of the road the riders set off later that year at 3am on a 326km stage from Luchon to Bayonne on tracks that were unfit for walking, let alone riding.

Yelling blue murder

The stage winner on Tourmalet back in 1910, Octave Lapize, took a knackering 14 hours and 10 minutes to finish the day. When he reached the summit of the final climb a reporter shouted at him what he thought of the Pyrenees. Lapize yelled back: "Murderers! You're murderers!"

Wisdom of Willie

More gems from Willie Lose. The RadioSport man was miffed that Boca Junior players were featured in the All Whites' parade through Wellington yesterday. "I couldn't understand why you'd put a junior team - it's not even their top side either! - a junior side, on a float from Argentina."

Perhaps some day Boca Seniors will visit these shores.

Salary cap winners

The team benefiting the most from the Melbourne Storm's salary cap? Wigan - the UK Super League's worst salary cap transgressors four years ago - have signed Ryan Hoffman, Brett Finch, and Jeff Lima.

Getting shirty

Religion and politics don't mix? Check. And sport and politics don't mix? Check. How about religion and sport?

Manchester United soccer shirts have been banned in Malaysia because the image of the famed red devil is forbidden in Islam. Also banned are the shirts of Brazil, Portugal, Serbia, Barcelona and Norway because their crests all carry images of a cross.

"There is no excuse for wearing such garments because it means, as a Muslim, you are idolising the symbol of another religion," said Datuk Nooh Gadot, the Mufti of Johor state.

We're advised that anyone wearing a Bok jersey is on the fast track to hell.

FREE STUFF!!!

The good people at Pikked are giving away one commemorative framed All Whites shirt with team signatures - value $1695. To go in the draw, email your name and contact details to supersport@nzherald.co.nz and name New Zealand's two World Cup goal-scoring heroes from South Africa.

Good week for...

London soccer fans

Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and West Ham have banned vuvuzelas from their home grounds for the coming season.

They could "impact on the ability of all supporters to hear any emergency safety announcements", say Spurs.

Bad week for...

Boxing

If the Tua decision seemed whiffy, then Paul Briggs' first-round knockout against Danny Green stinks to high heaven. A betting splurge saw odds on a first-round knockout going from $10.25 to $1.07. Briggs was down to a soft knock in 29 seconds.

The number

$2.85b

The value of Manchester United - still the most valuable franchise in the sports world according to Forbes magazine. American football's Dallas Cowboys come second at $2.31 billion.