British Cycling Chief Executive Ian Drake has issued this message to members following the death of 23 year old racing cyclist Junior Heffernan at last Sunday's Severn Bridge Road Race.

"The whole cycling community has been profoundly saddened by the death of Junior Heffernan and the thoughts of everyone at British Cycling are with Junior's family and friends.

"Our efforts this week have been focused on working with the police and supporting Bristol Road Club, the organisers of the Severn Bridge Road Race, the Herbalife team and of course Junior’s family.

"At this difficult time it is worth remembering incidents of this kind are very rare in road racing and this is the first death in decades and in tens of thousands of races.

"We are working with the Police and all those involved to understand the circumstances behind this tragic incident to help inform our continued work to safeguard our members.

"We take very seriously our responsibility to make racing on the roads as safe as possible for everyone and we will continue to work with our members, volunteers, race organisers and the authorities to protect those who take part in our sport."

Ian Drake
British Cycling Chief Executive