Superficially, the final stage of this year’s Tour of Britain into a windswept Felixstowe had a routine look, a chaotic bunch sprint won by the Slovenian Matevz Govekar, and Steve Williams of Wales straightforwardly sealing overall victory. But what preceded the sprint was 158km of anarchic racing, with a strong southerly splitting the peloton repeatedly amid a frantic series of attacks and chases.
The wind was at its most damaging between Framlingham, Aldeburgh and Wickham Market a couple of hours from the finish, blowing from the side and prompting the DSM team to increase the pace so violently that one of their number misjudged a corner in Framlingham and hit the pavement. With the peloton splitting in the crosswind, the first surge dislodged the triple stage winner Paul Magnier and – initially at least – the rider in fourth overall, Tom Donnenwirth; a second, prompted by Ineos’s Tobias Foss, saw off Julian Alaphilippe.
