A man died after suffering a cardiac arrest while taking part in Sunday’s RideLondon 100 cycling event, the organisers have said.
Nigel Buchan-Swanson, 69, fell ill at the 56-mile (about 90km) point, when the riders were in Surrey. He received immediate help from fellow riders and medics at the scene.
Buchan-Swanson was married with three children and six grandchildren and lived in Chichester, West Sussex. In a statement released by the organisers his wife, Deborah, said: “Nigel was a much loved husband, father and grandfather. He was a very experienced cyclist and died doing something he loved.”
The organisers said: “Everyone involved in Prudential RideLondon would like to express our sincere condolences to Nigel’s family and friends.
“No further details will be released and the family has asked for privacy. The exact cause of death will be established by later medical examination.”
He was fundraising for Macmillan Cancer Support while taking part in the annual event, run since 2013, which takes riders on a closed-roads route from the Olympic Park in east London, through the capital and out into Surrey, and then back to finish on the Mall.
In total, 26,720 riders completed the event on Sunday, which comprises both the 100-mile route and also 46-mile and 19-mile options.
One of the legacy events inspired by the 2012 Olympics, the Sunday events form part of what organisers bill as the world’s biggest weekend of cycling.
It also includes a family event on Saturday, when participants can ride along a smaller route in the centre of London, closed to traffic, as well as professional races for men and women, and a handcycle event.
Participants in the 100-mile event have died in earlier years. In 2016 Robin Chard, 48, from Bicester in Oxfordshire, suffered a heart attack about 25 miles into the course.
He had been raising money for Cancer Research UK in honour of his father, stepfather and mother-in-law, all of whom died from the disease. After he died the fundraising page – which had a target of £400 – received more than £66,000 in pledges.
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