Charges considered after cyclist dies in race

Police are yet to decide whether to charge organisers of a bike race in which a cyclist was killed at the weekend.

Robert Geoffrey Crompton, 57, of Auckland, died after a collision with a car between Kaponga and Eltham in south Taranaki on Saturday morning.

Police said he was competing in the Taranaki Cycle Challenge when he made contact with another cyclist and then hit an oncoming support crew car. He died at the scene.

Senior Constable Christopher Glen of Eltham police said today that they would probably not be pressing charges against the driver of the vehicle, as it did not appear he was at fault.

But they would be having a "close look" at what directions were given to the riders in the race and the support vehicles.

The organiser of a cycle race, Astrid Andersen, was convicted in 2004 of criminal nuisance and fined $10,000 following the death of a competitor in the 2001 Christchurch to Akaroa "Le Race".

The cyclist, Vanessa Caldwell, was overtaking other riders and on the wrong side of the road when she was hit by an oncoming car.

But last year the Court of Appeal overturned the sentence saying that for someone to be held criminally liable, they had to actually know that their specific action or inaction could result in a risk for competitors.

At the time Ms Andersen believed she had issued a clear set of safety instructions to competitors. Her instructions included a direction to cyclists not to cross the centreline.

- NZPA