CYCLING

German rider captures Tour de France stage

Marcel Kittel of Germany led a sprint Monday to win the third stage of the Tour de France as the race entered London for its last leg in England before crossing the English Channel to France.

Kittel also won Stage 1 in a sprint. Rain in London doused riders at the end of the 96-mile ride from Cambridge toward the finish near Buckingham Palace.

Vincenzo Nibali of Italy retained the overall leader’s yellow jersey with a two-second lead on the most likely contenders to win the three-week race in Paris on July 27.

BASKETBALL

D-LEAGUE: Maine Red Claws forward Damen Bell-Holter was one of the 12 players named to the team that will compete July 11-14 in the NBA summer league in Las Vegas.

Maine assistant coach Tunde Adekola will be one of the assistant coaches for team.

HOCKEY

NHL: Nashville Predators forward Mike Fisher has a ruptured Achilles tendon that likely will cause him to miss the start of the season.

Fisher underwent surgery Thursday after rupturing the Achilles during a training session. The team expects Fisher to make a full recovery in four to six months.

• Nashville signed defenseman Anton Volchenkov to a one-year contract worth $1 million.

• Chicago hired Jimmy Waite to coach its goaltenders.

• Bryan Murray, the Ottawa Senators’ general manager and president of hockey operations, was diagnosed with cancer.

• The Columbus Blue Jackets re-signed forward Corey Tropp and defenseman Corey Goloubef.

SOCCER

DI STEFANO DIES: Alfredo Di Stefano, who helped Real Madrid win five straight European Cups from 1956-60, died at 88.

Di Stefano also helped Real Madrid win eight Spanish league titles. He was voted European player of the year in 1957 and ’59.

BASEBALL

NECBL: Caden Bailey scored the winning run on a wild pitch in the fourth inning and the Sanford Mainers (14-8) held on for a 1-0, five-inning win over the Danbury Westerners (5-20) in a rain-shortened game at Danbury, Connecticut.

Brett Adcock had nine strikeouts and no walks in a one-hitter for the Mainers.

FCBL: The Pittsfield Suns (15-11) scored the go-ahead run in the ninth inning in an 8-7 win over the Old Orchard Beach Raging Tide (9-18) at Old Orchard Beach. Paul McDonough had two hits, including a homer, and drove in five runs for Old Orchard.

TENNIS

HALL OF FAME: Second-seeded Ivo Karlovic of Croatia used his overpowering serve to beat American Robby Ginepri 7-6 (2), 6-2 in the opening round of the Hall of Fame championships at Newport, R.I.

The 6-foot-11 Karlovic had 17 aces and only two double-faults, winning 92 percent of his first-serve points during breezy conditions on the grass at Newport.

SWEDISH OPEN: Pere Riba retired after only one game, allowing fifth-seeded Joao Sousa of Portugal to advance to the second round of the clay-court tournament at Bastad.

– From staff and news services