Lorena Wiebes won the opening two stages of the Tour of Britain Women, sprinting to victory on a 158.9km circuit in Cockermouth before retaining the leader's green jersey on stage two between Clitheroe and Blackpool. Chiara Consonni and Josie Nelson rounded out the podium on the first stage.
The five-day race opened with a tribute to Finlay Tarling, the 19-year-old British rider killed in a collision during the Volta a Portugal last week. Safety moved to the fore when Australia's Maeve Plouffe, riding for O'Shea Red Chilli Bikes, said she narrowly avoided being struck by a car on a roundabout while chasing back to the peloton after a puncture. Jonathan Day, events director of British Cycling Ventures, said rider safety is paramount and the incident is under review.
Wiebes, who holds 134 career road victories, will skip the road world championships in Montreal to target the omnium title in Shanghai in October.