Tom Boonen beats Geraint Thomas to RideLondon Classic as crashes mar event

Belgian beat Briton in sprint-finish as two seperate crashes delay amateur race

Tom Boonen celebrates with second-placed Mark Renshaw and third-placed Michael Matthews (Getty)

Belgian Tom Boonen of the Etiix-Quick Step team won the 202-km RideLondon-Surrey Classic in a dramatic sprint finish on Sunday.

Briton Geraint Thomas, of Team Sky, launched a brave sole breakaway 50 kms from the end and built up a lead of more than one minute but was reeled in by the peloton as Boonen snatched victory on the line.

Australian Mark Renshaw, of the Dimension Data team, and his compatriot, Michael Matthews, of Orica-BikeExchange, finished second and third respectively.

Tour de France champion Chris Froome, so often the beneficiary of Thomas's selfless support work with Team Sky, stayed safely in the peloton throughout the race as he continued his preparations for the Olympic Games.

Chris Froome and Geraint Thomas near the start of the race in London on Sunday (Getty)

It was the Kenyan-born Briton's first event in England since the 2014 Tour de France started there.

Dutchwoman Kirsten Wild of the Hitec Products team won the women's event on Saturday.

Run over a similar route to the 2012 Olympic road race, the event was halted on police advice for 20 minutes a quarter of the way through after riders became caught up in congestion caused by a series of accidents during the earlier mass participation event.

Two cyclists were seriously injured as separate crashes affected the race. Air ambulances carried away the two participants, as Emergency services said one man crashed into a tree, while the other fell from his bicycle and suffered serious head injuries.

Many racers were delayed for close to an hour as organisers of the fund-raising event opened up a longer alternative route. Among thousands taking part on the final day of the annual three-day cycling festival was retired middle-distance track star Kelly Holmes, who won two gold medals for Britain at the 2004 Athens Olympics.