Steve Williams wins Tour of Britain title as Govekar takes frantic final stage

Steve Williams wins Tour of Britain title as Govekar takes frantic final stage

Welshman claims rare home tour winOnley second overall as Donovan misses out on podium

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 158 kilometres 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 took to 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.

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