The start of the Tour de Lombardy race was delayed for around five minutes Saturday when cyclists didn't begin as scheduled in a protest to denounce unsafe racing conditions and the recent death of a cyclist.
Star rider Remco Evenepoel spoke for the peloton at the start line in Bergamo, Italy.
"Unfortunately, we lost the life of a brother and of a colleague, so we want to make this statement to show the world that we cannot keep accepting the fact that guys are getting injured or literally dying in what we like the most to do," Evenepoel said. "So this is why we want to spend five minutes more still to make our statement towards organizations, to the public, to everybody that is following cycling, because we cannot accept the fact that people are dying."
British rider Finlay Tarling died in August at the Volta a Portugal race when the 19-year-old was run over by a car that entered the road. The driver reportedly missed the signs from stewards and entered the road going in the opposite direction of the race.
France's rising cycling talent Paul Seixas made history Saturday when he became the rave's youngest winner ever on Saturday after riders protested safety concerns.
The 20-year-old Seixas broke away with around 20 kilometers left to win the one-day race in northern Italy that had been dominated by the currently injured Tadej Pogačar for the previous five years.
"I had the feeling today would be a great day. It feels like a dream," Seixas said.
Spanish Vuelta winner Enric Mas was second, 48 seconds behind, followed by Italian Giulio Ciccone.
The Tour of Lombardy started in 1905 and is one of cycling's elite one-day Monument races.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
