Cyclist left red-faced after premature celebration within touching distance of the finish line hands victory to Aussie rival at the Tour of Britain

An Australian cyclist says she ‘can’t believe it’ after taking victory in the Tour of Britain thanks to her rival celebrating a major blunder too early.

Ruby Roseman-Gannon was awarded the final stage win on Sunday after a ‘stupid mistake’ cost rival riders Christine Majerus and Lotte Kopecky victory.

Majerus inexplicably raised her hand on triumph meters from the finish, without Melbourne’s Roseman-Gannon sneaking through to take the podium.

In the photo finish, Roseman-Gannon was inches ahead of Majerus, with overall winner Kopecky slowing down to give her teammate Majerus the chance to lead the front of the sprint pack.

That mistake was compounded when Majerus failed to complete the job.

An Australian cyclist (middle) won the final stage of the Tour of Britain on Sunday

Ruby Roseman-Gannon benefited from an early celebration from Christine Majerus

“I still can’t believe I won that – it’s my first European win and I’m still in shock,” said Roseman-Gannon.

‘These are moments when you really don’t expect it. In some races you come in as the leader and you have a lot of pressure, and in other races you come in and everything works out.

“Today I was quite worried about the rain and nervous about crashing, and I didn’t really have the right attitude that I would win the race, but winning is great. Overall it was a great race.”

Kopecky was similarly stunned by the 25-year-old’s victory, revealing that the team had made an agreement with Majerus to win the stage if conditions permitted, as a gift for her help in winning the overall Tour.

“We made the agreement that she will win today, but maybe it was a stupid mistake,” Kopecky said.

The Australian is congratulated by compatriot Amber Pate (left) after her victory

‘But I still would have done the same. It could have been a nice ending for Christine, but we finished well as a team.

“Maybe it’s a little funny and it is what it is, and I’m not disappointed.”

It’s not the first time premature celebration has cost an athlete victory. Last week, Spanish racewalker Laura Garcia-Caro thought she was on the verge of winning bronze at the European Championships in Rome, but was pipped to the finish line by Lyudmyla Olyanovska.