The French state railway company SNCF have called for police action after professional cyclists disobeyed a level crossing warning while competing in the Paris-Roubaix spring classic.
The race saw seven cyclists disobey the level crossing warning system, with race organisers stating that the riders were unable to stop on time. The SNCF have issued a statement calling for "several riders" to be prosecuted for acting "against all safety rules".
Safety
The rail network also states that action should be taken for breaching the safety rules in such a prominent platform with the event broadcast to millions across the world. An SNCF statement stated: "Millions of television viewers saw live this extremely serious and irresponsible action which could have been tragic.
"A few seconds later, a TGV ran on this line and could have hit the peloton."
One rider was clipped by the barrier that came down as he cycled across the tracks, but managed to safely evade the train that passed moments later.
A police motorbike prevented any other riders from attempting to cross when the barriers were down. Despite criticism from the SNCF and French media outlets, organisers state that no action would be taken against riders who cycled forward through the barriers.
Guy Dobbelaere, president of the jury of race commissioners, said:"It wasn't possible for the leading riders to stop sufficiently safely,"
"The peloton was 10 metres away when the barrier started to close."
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