GB's Bate out of road race because of pilot illness

Former Paralympic champion Stephen Bate has been forced to retreat from the men's B cycling roadworthy contention aft his aviator Chris Latham fell ill.

Bate, 47, races successful the class for visually impaired riders. All competitors thrust connected tandem bikes with a sighted pilot.

Bate and Latham person formed a squad passim the Paris 2024 Paralympics, winning metallic successful the idiosyncratic pursuit earlier successful the Games.

But Latham's unwellness means Bate is incapable to enactment and helium was forced to retreat connected Friday morning, hours earlier the race.

"Unfortunately implicit the past 24 hours Chris Latham has developed signs and symptoms of unwellness and has truthful been withdrawn from the roadworthy contention connected aesculapian grounds," a connection from British Cycling read.

"This means helium and tandem spouse Steve Bate volition nary longer beryllium competing successful the men’s B roadworthy contention this afternoon. We privation Chris a speedy betterment and look guardant to seeing him backmost connected his motorcycle soon."

Riders and pilots successful the B class are a team, meaning a replacement aviator cannot beryllium sourced for Bate.

After winning metallic connected the opening time of the Games successful the velodrome, Bate and Latham competed successful the men's B roadworthy clip proceedings connected Wednesday.

They finished 5th successful what whitethorn beryllium to beryllium Bate's last Paralympic Games race.

Bate is 1 of the astir experienced members of the ParalympicGB squad, and won 2 golden medals astatine the 2016 Games successful Rio de Janeiro.