Stage neutralised at Tour of Britain Women due to road traffic accident on route

On Thursday, stage two of the Lloyds Tour of Britain Women was halted for an hour due to a road traffic accident further along the race route. The incident occurred when Uno-X Mobility rider Katrine Aalerud was leading solo with a 50-second advantage, approaching the second climb of the day, Nick o' Pendle, with 73.5km remaining.

Aalerud was signaled with a red flag by a race organization representative and stopped on the road. The chasing peloton received the same red flag message, allowing the group to realign and receive jackets from team cars. After a 30-minute wait in the rain, the stage resumed under the escort of a lead race vehicle. Both the Queen of the Mountain on Nick o' Pendle and the subsequent intermediate sprint were deemed neutralized, with no points awarded.

The race restarted 66km from the original line, on the intermediate sprint in Whalley, an hour after the initial stoppage. Aalerud was permitted to depart ahead of the peloton, restoring her 50-second lead. In a social media statement, the Lloyds Tour of Britain explained that the race was neutralized due to a road traffic accident ahead of the convoy.

The second Queen of the Mountain climb was subsequently cancelled. The organiser's statement thanked the teams, riders, police, and local authorities for their cooperation during the race disruption. Rolling road closures were in place, securing the route for the convoy. No riders were affected by the accident, which took place on an open stretch ahead of the race.

The stage's scheduled start was delayed by half an hour due to a blockage on the race route, after which the riders took a detour out of Clitheroe and rejoined the original course approximately 20km in. Stage two is now expected to conclude in Blackpool around 4pm.