The Volta a Portugal was in mourning on Friday after the tragic death of NSN Development Team rider Finlay Tarling during the 166.8km stage 8 from Melfaço to Fafe.
The 19-year-old Briton was racing off the back of the peloton when he was involved in a collision with an oncoming driver, who had driven their vehicle onto the race course, according to reporting from Portuguese national broadcaster RTP. Further details of the incident have yet to be disclosed.
Race organisers were quick to confirm the neutralisation of the stage, later announced that no racing would take place for the remainder of the day and podium ceremonies were also cancelled.
At the time of neutralisation, breakaway riders Afonso Silva (Tavira-Crédito Agrícola), Hugo Nunes (Credibom-LA Alumínios-Marcos Car) had a 40-second advantage over the peloton, led by UAE Team Emirates-XRG and the Anicolor-Campicorn team of race leader Alexis Guérin.
Both the breakaway pair and the peloton soon slowed to a crawl behind race organisation cars as the news spread through the peloton and beyond, and the race convoy continued to the finish line.
Tarling’s NSN teammates – Alvaro García, Zac Marriage, Ben Morin, Emil Nielsen, and Alex Hewes – rode together towards the rear of the peloton, before later moving to the front of the group and leading the race in the final kilometres of the stage and across the finish line.
Earlier in the day, the stage got off to a fast start as attackers tried time and again to go clear at the front. Fábio Costa (Feira dos Sofás-Boavista), in the break yesterday, was on the attack on several occasions, including over the first classified climb of the day, the third-category Espinheiro (5.1km at 4.6%), after 50km of racing.
He drew out several other riders until he was out front with a group of 10. Txomin Juaristi (Euskaltel-Euskadi), as was José Neves (GI Group Holding-Simoldes UDO) – like Costa also on the attack during stage 7 – who lay fifth overall in the GC standings.
Despite Neves – 4:29 off the race lead – being in the move, their advantage quickly hit two minutes as UAE took up the pacemaking, looking to protect the third place overall of stage 7 winner Adrià Pericas.
Anicolor-Campicarn eventually contributed to the pacemaking, too, with the hilltop finish in Fafe in their sights. The finish, used yearly at the Volta, has seen victories by modern race legends including Gustavo César Veloso, Rui Sousa, and Cândido Barbosa, and both Guérin and Nych will have been eyeing it.
Racing into the final 40km, the two teams had cut the gap to a minute, and so Afonso Silva and Hugo Nunes set off in search of glory at the front.
Behind them, the rest of the break was caught, while further back, tragedy was unfolding as Tarling lost his life. The neutralisation of the race followed, with the peloton rolling to Fafe under a dark cloud.
Volta organisers haven’t yet announced what they have planned for the remainder of the race, which was set to head for its famous summit finish at Senhora da Graça on Saturday before drawing to a conclusion with a final sprint stage in Porto on Sunday.