An amateur cyclist has died after being hit by a car during a road race in France.

Ian Bashford, of Bromley, was struck during the final descent of the Duo Normand race in Marigny, north-west France, on Sunday,

Mr Bashford, a member of the Old Portlians Cycling Club, based in Croydon, could not be revived following the crash, organisers said in a statement.

The race continued to its conclusion following the accident in accordance with the wishes of Mr Bashford's friends, it added.

In a statement, the Old Portlians Cycling Club said: "It is with great sadness that we have to report that Ian Bashford was killed today while taking part in the Duo Normand.

"Ian was hit by a car during the final descent in to the finish area.

"Our thoughts are with his wife and family at this very sad time."

Around 400 riders were expected to take part in the 35th Duo Normand, a 54km time-trial race.

According to French media reports, Mr Bashford was hit by a support vehicle when he was just 200 metres from the finish line.

His son, Neil Bashford, told the Evening Standard: "He was taken out by a support vehicle for another rider from another team. I gather they were overtaking and went on to the side of the road my dad and his partner were on.

"The car shouldn't have been there - that's pretty obvious. Dad was 200 metres from the finish on his side of the road."

He added: "How did this happen on an organised circuit event? This could have been Bradley Wiggins. If that happened everyone in cycling would be looking at making changes, but it's a 60-year-old amateur cyclist from England."

Julian Hutchings, secretary of the Old Portlians, said Mr Bashford had been a member of the club for around 20 years and had taken part in the Duo Normand at least six times before.

The 60-year-old was riding with a team-mate on the final stretch of the course when he was hit by a van, which is believed to have been supporting another team of amateur cyclists.

"Ian and his partner Peter were coming into town, they were about a quarter of a mile from the finish. Having headed downhill they would have been doing 30mph to 35mph," Mr Hutchings said.

"A van - which was following a pair of cyclists coming towards them - swerved to the left, probably to overtake some other cyclists and catch up with their own cyclists.

"There are cones, but the cones are spaced widely enough so that cars can go through, so the van swerved left on to Ian and Peter's side of the road.

"Peter and Ian tried to avoid it. Peter went to his right, into the gutter.

"He crashed and came off but wasn't badly hurt, but the vehicle crashed into Ian."

Mr Hutchings, who arrived on the scene about 15 minutes after the incident, said emergency services worked for half an hour to attempt to resuscitate Mr Bashford.

The club secretary said he believed there had been accidents on the same stretch of the course in previous years, but never a fatality.

"There are questions to be asked about the organisation of the event, in the sense that you have cyclists going back and forth on the same stretch of road, with cars able to travel on that stretch of road and overtake on that stretch of road," he said.

Mr Hutchings described Mr Bashford as a "passionate cyclist" who "would help anybody".

He added: "He was the best cyclist in the club and he was well-known, well-liked not only by everybody in the club, but an awful lot of people in the cycling community in south London, southern England, and beyond."