Cycling-Boonen wins RideLondon Classic in sprint finish

LONDON, July 31 (Reuters) - Belgian Tom Boonen of the Etiix-Quick Step team won the 202-km RideLondon-Surrey Classic in a dramatic sprint finish on Sunday. Briton Geraint Thomas of Team Sky launched a brave sole breakaway some 50 kms from the end and built up a lead of more than one minute but he was reeled in by the peloton and Boonen snatched victory on the line. Australian Mark Renshaw of the Dimension Data team and his compatriot Michael Matthews of Orica-BikeExchange finished second and third respectively. Tour de France champion Chris Froome, so often the beneficiary of Thomas's selfless support work with Team Sky, stayed safely in the peloton throughout the race as he continued his preparations for next month's Olympic Games. It was the Kenyan-born Briton's first event in England since the 2014 Tour de France started there. Run over a similar route to the 2012 Olympic road race, the event was halted on police advice for 20 minutes a quarter of the way through after riders became caught up in congestion caused by a series of accidents during the earlier mass participation event. Dutchwoman Kirsten Wild of the Hitec Products team won the women's event on Saturday. (Writing by Ed Osmond; Editing by Clare Fallon)