Finney 'shocked' to win Britain's Paris-Roubaix

It's a mud-fest around Melton Mowbray

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Catching her rivals by surprise, Jessica Finney launched a long sprint at the end of a gruelling Women's CICLE Classic to hold on for a slender victory over a small finishing group.

Overnight rain made the notoriously rough roads around Melton Mowbray extra challenging, making for an action-packed race on Sunday.

Dubbed the 'British Paris-Roubaix', this year's event saw a group of six riders survive the race's many crashes and mechanical problems on the treacherous off-road sectors.

Finney (AWOL O'Shea) took the faster finishers in the leading group by surprise, launching her bid for glory coming into the final corner. She had enough power to fend off Monica Greenwood (DASHandsling Bikes) in second and Flora Perkins (Fenix-Deceuninck Development Team) in third.

"I was shocked at the end," said a delighted Finney, who also won last year's Stockton Grand Prix.

"I was waiting for the sprint as the group were working well so it would have been hard solo. I didn't think I could beat the pure sprinters so I went before the final corner. I took them by surprise and I just held it."