“Why, Manchester, why?”: Cyclist blocked from dedicated cycle route as cargo bike won’t fit through barriers; Gruesome 50cm splinter surgically removed from track cyclist’s leg; Flèche Wallonne + more on the live blog

Why, Manchester, why??
by
u/pc_kant in
ukbike

It’s the latest bike path barrier shocker, this time from Manchester where this rider found their cargo bike access to an off-road cycle route blocked by some extensive barrier-ing. Worse still, they tried a different entrance to the route and found the same problem.

What a way to ruin a cargo bike IKEA run.

We’ve reported on numerous of these cases across the country over the years. It’s often outdated barriers from years gone by that council’s haven’t got round to removing yet.

In some cases that’s giving the local authority in question too much credit… yes, some are still installing barriers like these on their cycle routes. The reason for more recent installations is often given as ‘to stop anti-social behaviour such as kids on motorbikes, quad bikes or any other vehicle that shouldn’t be on a cycle route’.

> “Oh! Bollards!” Delivery cyclist says council’s new cycle route barriers are too narrow for cargo bike trailers… also supplied by the council

However, as happens here, it means anyone on a cargo bike, or in a wheelchair, or on a mobility scooter is left with no access too.

Wheels for Wellbeing, the charity campaigning for inclusive cycling and the enhancement of disabled people’s lives and journeys through cycling and wheeling, has spoken extensively about the issue.

Encouragingly, on this post too, someone saying they are a volunteer with the Walk Wheel Cycle Trust commented offering some support and advice.

“As others have said these are slowly being replaced. As volunteers we are regularly tasked with checking access points like these. Please report this to Walk Wheel Cycle Trust (formerly Sustrans),” they said.

Let’s hope this cycle path gets its much-needed upgrade soon…

Demi Vollering holds on after a HUGE long-range effort to take her second win at Flèche Wallonne 🙌✨ pic.twitter.com/kHmcZwgtLh

— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) April 22, 2026

A more established star took the women’s edition of Flèche Wallonne, Demi Vollering just having enough to see off Dutch compatriot Puck Pieterse. After winning this race back in 2023, Vollering has finished second twice in the past two editions, last year behind Pieterse.

This year, Vollering went early and looked the winner for most of the final fearsome ramp to the line, but then Pieterse got closer… and closer… and closer. At the line the comfortable gap had disappeared, but Vollering had just enough momentum to roll across in celebration while Pieterse slumped behind.

Surprise Amstel Gold Race winner Paula Blasi proved that win was far from a fluke, the Spaniard taking third.

Paul Seixas conquers the mighty Mur de Huy 🙌⚡️

The young Frenchman continues to impress this season! 🫡 pic.twitter.com/vOdLvl43cD

— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) April 22, 2026

Cycling’s hottest prospect, the 19-year-old wonderkid Paul Seixas, has continued his meteoric rise to cycling’s elite, winning Flèche Wallonne and becoming the youngest winner in the race’s history. A mouth-watering showdown with Tadej Pogačar, Remco Evenepoel and Tom Pidcock now awaits at Liège–Bastogne–Liège on Sunday.

At Seixas’s age Pogačar was still riding for a Continental team in Slovenia, the Frenchman’s signature now the one every top-level team (including UAE Team Emirates) is after.

Following on from his Itzulia Basque Country win earlier this month, Seixas was the strongest on the famous double-digit ramp atop the Mur de Huy. He will face tougher opposition than Mauro Schmid, Ben Tulett and Benoit Cosnefroy on Sunday, but this looked a comfortable win against a peloton full of seasoned pros, in some cases 10 or 15 years Seixas’s senior. The French press will be salivating…

With the RMT Tube strike, it’s even busier than usual on London’s bike lanes.

Not all lines are impacted so check before you travel.

If you’re on a bike, take it easy & look out for others.

If you haven’t cycled for a bit, refresh your skills online:https://t.co/gQb7yjIfnE pic.twitter.com/WcomNC28XI

— Will Norman (@willnorman) April 21, 2026

It’s Mallorca 312 week, which means amateur riders from across Europe are flocking to the Balearic Island (more so than usual).  Mallorca’s influx of cycling tourists has become a point of much debate within the wider tourism discourse that has hit parts of Spain in recent times.

However, as the president of a Mallorca hotel association pointed out, the island’s popularity with cyclists brings much investment, especially with 8,500 people expected to take part in the iconic Mallorca 312 gran fondo this weekend.

> Cycle tourism in Mallorca “an opportunity, not a problem” says minister, despite resident backlash over disruption and littering

“Cyclists spend more than people realise and generate longer stays,” Pepe de Luna told the Majorca Daily Bulletin, before explaining how the start town’s hotels are at 99 per cent occupancy this week as a result.

“[The Mallorca 312] is one of the most important events on the cycling calendar, it positions us globally, and since we started working with them thirteen years ago, time has proven right all of us who believed in it,” he continued.

Perfection from Pidcock 🤩

Tom Pidcock aces his sprint in Stage 3 of the Tour of the Alps to take the win 🙌 pic.twitter.com/3AIWp0qXeO

— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) April 22, 2026

Tom Pidcock was victorious at the Tour of the Alps this afternoon, sprinting to win on the third stage of the race. The stage was somewhat overshadowed, however, by a major crash which saw racing halted after just two kilometres.

It occurred before the TV pictures were live but the Tour of the Alps organisers described the neutralisation as coming because of “a big fall in the peloton”.

Around 30 riders were affected, U23 world champion Lorenzo Finn abandoning the race along with several other injured riders.

After racing resumed it was Pidcock who got his arms in the air, the Brit himself just back from a frightening crash at Volta a Catalunya recently.

Stage one hero Tommaso Dati was second, while Egan Bernal took third. Yesterday’s stage winner Giulio Pellizzari remains in the leader’s jersey and has a four-second advantage over Thymen Arensman, and a six-second advantage over the Dutchman’s Ineos teammate Bernal.

> Cycle Speedway to “decouple” from British Cycling, as governing body accused of treating sport as a “poor second place to more glamorous disciplines”

Muriel Furrer’s parents have told The Athletic they “must accept the outcome” of a criminal investigation into their daughter’s death at the 2024 UCI World Championships and will not pursue any further legal action.

In what is quite a tough read, but an excellent interview with journalist Jacob Whitehead, the family of Furrer explain how they “have found a way to live with the grief and the immeasurable loss and suffering”.

Furrer’s parents, Christine and Reto, accepted the investigation which found neither emergency responders nor course safety were criminally liable for her death during the junior road race.

The incident shook the cycling world, Furrer having died in a crash on a descent at the World Championships just 15 minutes from her childhood home. It was later revealed Furrer was not found for around an hour-and-a-half, the case acting as a catalyst for the UCI and organisers seeking more access to GPS tracking technology in pro races.

“(We) are particularly concerned that Muriel remained undetected for so long,” Furrer’s parents said. “It is important that the right lessons are learned from the incident and that similar situations are prevented in the future.”

The family accepted the investigation has reached its conclusions and “acknowledge no criminal conduct has occurred”.

> How to choose the right bike for cycling to work — what’s the best bike for commuting duties?

 

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A post shared by Moritz Mauss (@mauss.moritz)

Moritz Mauss, the German track rider who also races on the road for UAE Team Emirates, crashed out of a Madison race in Gent.

During the crash, the 18-year-old ended up with some fairly gruesome splinters in his leg and hip, injuries so bad that the wood had to be surgically removed.

Sharing the wince-inducing snaps on Instagram, Moritz said he weighed up whether he should post it, but  believes it’s “important to also show these sides of the journey and the sport”.

“I slid across the track, and a 50cm-long piece of wood splintered from the track (shown in slide 3) and went directly through my hip and upper left leg,” he explained. “I was taken directly to the hospital and had surgery only about two hours after the accident. Everything went smoothly, and I am already back home now.

“I got really lucky because the splinter missed my nerves and most of my leg muscles. I will be out for a while now, but it could have been A LOT worse. Only a few centimetres could have meant a career-ending injury.

“Thanks for the amazing support from my national team and the people at the hospital. I am really grateful to be in such good hands and to have so many supportive and loving people around me.

“Among all the wonderful moments this year and everything this sport has already brought me, those low points are also part of it. We have to accept what happened, and I will make the best of it. The work I have put in over the last few months is definitely not lost, and I am certain there is still a lot to come this season. Time to enjoy some unexpected days off the bike now.”