Attack survivor's 'amazing' Tour de France honour

A survivor of the Westminster Bridge attack has spoken of the "amazing experience" he had representing the UK in cycling the final stretch of the Tour de France.

Travis Frain, from Darwen, was on a trip to London with Edge Hill University when he was stuck by a car driven by Khalid Masood on 22 March 2017.

On Friday, the 26-year-old rode from Monaco to Nice with 75 other victim of terror attacks to highlight the importance of working together to prevent further attacks.

The 26-year-old said "it wasn't an easy ride by any stretch" but added the response from spectators was "heartwarming".

Now a lecturer in counter-terrorism at the University of Central Lancashire, Mr Frain was the only representative of the UK in the group.

They rode the final 33.7km (21 mile) stretch of the Tour two days before the race competitors - after the 2024 finish line moved from Paris to Nice because of preparations for the Olympics.

Mr Frain said: "I met a few people at previous events and they had set up a charity to cycle each year to bring victims together", but it was "significant" that this year the race ended on Promenade des Anglais in Nice where 86 people were killed in a terror attack in 2016.

"It was an amazing experience to be part of such a historic event, alongside people who've been through a lot but have come out on top and who support other victims," he said.

Mr Frain, who was awarded an OBE last year for services to counter-extremism and to victims of terrorism, said when he crossed the finish line there was "an amazing atmosphere".

"There was a real lightbulb moment with spectators as we cycled into Nice on the exact route of the Tour de France," he said.

"People were lining the streets looking confused and then they saw our jerseys and they started clapping for us.

"It was really heartwarming to see."

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