André Greipel denies wrongdoing after being relegated in Tour of Britain finale
Elia Viviani awarded stage eight win after judges relegate the German.
After being stripped of his second stage victory in the Tour of Britain for an “irregular sprint” in Sunday's London finale, André Greipel insisted that he did not deliberately block Sky's Elia Viviani.
The Italian inherited the stage victory after commissaires ruled that Greipel deviated from his line in the closing metres on Regent Street.
Viviani was slowed after the pair touched in sight of the line, and he crossed the line making a gesture in the direction of race officials.
"I didn’t see Viviani coming; I was just concentrating on my sprint and suddenly he was next to me,” said Greipel.
“The final straight was not that wide, I had to look for space to overtake. Everybody was on the limit on the final corner.
“I didn’t do anything for purpose that’s for sure. That’s sprinting.”
Viviani did not attend the post-race press conference owing to his flight home.This was his third victory of the race, having won the race opener into Wrexham a week ago and stage three into Kelso's Floors Castle on Tuesday.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Speaking to TeamSky.com, Viviani said: "When I saw Greipel go I went directly on his left-hand side. He came across a little bit, a little bit and that edged me towards the barriers.
"I'm disappointed because it is better to win without this. He is a big champion and I've never seen him do this before. But we won in London and that is the main thing."
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Nick Bull is an NCTJ qualified journalist who has written for a range of titles, as well as being a freelance writer at Beat Media Group, which provides reports for the PA Media wire which is circulated to the likes of the BBC and Eurosport. His work at Cycling Weekly predominantly dealt with professional cycling, and he now holds a role as PR & Digital Manager at SweetSpot Group, which organises the Tour of Britain.
-
Forget distance covered, these are the key stats to note in your Strava Year in Sport
We asked a coach how to best analyse our end of year Strava data
By Tom Davidson Published
-
'She should show a bit more respect' - Lotte Kopecky responds to Demi Vollering comments
The pair seemingly had one last fractious year together at SD Worx-Protime in 2024
By Tom Davidson Published
-
André Greipel: WorldTour relegation system 'totally bulls**t'
The former pro cyclist talks UCI points, watching cycling as a fan, and the lack of sprint opportunities at the Tour de France
By Adam Becket Published
-
André Greipel announces retirement at end of season
The German calls time on 16 years at the top level
By Jonny Long Published
-
André Greipel takes second win of the season on stage four of the Ruta del Sol 2021
The German sprinter took his first win since early 2019 just a few days ago in Mallorca
By Tim Bonville-Ginn Published
-
André Greipel wins first sprint in two years in Spain
The former dominant sprinter topped the leaderboard for the first time since January 2019
By Alex Ballinger Published
-
André Greipel plans retirement for the end of 2022
André Greipel has revealed his plans to retire at the end of the 2022 season.
By Alex Ballinger Published
-
André Greipel abandons Tour de France 2020
André Greipel has abandoned the Tour de France 2020.
By Alex Ballinger Published
-
André Greipel signs new contract to ride at WorldTour level for another two years
André Greipel will continue racing at WorldTour level for at least another two years after signing a new contract.
By Alex Ballinger Published
-
André Greipel pops shoulder back in and rides home after training crash
André Greipel was forced to pop his shoulder back into place and ride home after a training crashed that will take him off the road for three months.
By Alex Ballinger Published