Luke Rowe was disqualified from the Tour of Flanders for riding onto a roadside bike path behind some spectators before the second pass of the Oude Kwaremont.
Spectators had come off the footpath and stepped into both the bike lane and the road. Rowe was weaving his way around them and he was spotted on the path with 56km remaining.
“I am absolutely gutted. It’s heart-wrenching. The reason I was there was no fault of my own,” Rowe said. “As soon as I was on the bike path, it wasn’t like I was flying through spectators or try to get an advantage. I did the safest thing, braked, took my time, went back to road and took the right-hander right at the back.”
“As soon as I heard it, I pulled out. I think they made the wrong decision,” he said. “I challenge you to go out there and find a video of me on a bike path, because I doubt you’ll find one. I am honest rider. I try to race fair. I would never put spectators at risk. It was go on the bike path for 100 meters, or crash. And I chose the bike path.”
#RVV18 – Here is why Rowe got a DSQ pic.twitter.com/QAzUBL9hBt
— La Flamme Rouge (@laflammerouge16) April 1, 2018
