George Bennett hit a spectator on the final climb in Andorra and didn't mince his words at the finish (Photo: Sirotti)
Tour de France debutant George Bennett (LottoNL-Jumbo) may have put in one of the best rides of his career on Sunday’s stage 9 in Andorra but it was not without incident.
The Kiwi infiltrated what turned out to be the winning breakaway and made a number of efforts to get away from the on the Col de Beixalis, only to be recaptured.
And when Tom Dumoulin (Giant Alpecin) attacked on the brutal final climb of the Arcalis none of the men still up front could match him with the Dutchman riding to victory and Bennett taking 7th.
However, his race very nearly ended on that final climb when a spectator stepped out into the road and Bennett rode into her, momentarily knocking her to the ground and apparently out cold, all of which was captured by the TV cameras.
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The good news is that she has recovered and Bennett stayed upright, stickybottle’s data analysis suggesting the bolt of adrenalin from the incident appeared to aid his performance.
After the stage when TV reporters caught up with Bennett he said he felt terrible about what had happened and expressed the hope the person he collided with was OK.
However, the 26-year-old who was 7th at the Tour of California earlier this year also said the incident should serve as a warning to fans coming to see the racing that they needed to be careful and give the riders space.
His words were sympathetic but he was firm; have a listen to what he said in the short clip below.
Sympathetic, but strong words
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