Two kangaroos caused havoc on the final stage of the Tour Down Under near Adelaide on Sunday, almost bouncing race leader Jay Vine out of overall title contention.
Vine and three other riders were knocked from their bikes just past the halfway mark of the fifth and final stage when the kangaroos jumped out in front of them.
Three riders – Menno Huising, Lucas Stevenson and Alberto Dainese – were forced to quit the race as a result, but Vine got on a team-mate's bike to complete the stage.
Vine, who duly sealed the overall title with a gap of one minute and three seconds to his closest rival, Mauro Schmid, admitted he could do little to avert the crash.
He told post-race media: "All the European (riders) always ask me what’s the most dangerous animal in Australia and I tell them kangaroos.
"They (kangaroos) wait in the bushes until you cannot stop and then they jump out in front of you."
Great Britain’s Matthew Brennan, who avoided the kangaroo incident, won the stage, while Vine’s UAE Team Emirates team-mate Adam Yates was the highest-placed British finisher overall in 23rd place.
