LONDON - France's Arnaud Demare won the inaugural Ride London-Surrey classic after a tense sprint finish on The Mall on Sunday. The 21-year-old benefited from a fine display from his FDJ team to beat Italian Sacha Modolo and compatriot Yannick Martinez in to second and third place respectively after launching his sprint 150 metres from the finish. Demare, who was crowned U-23 world road race champion two years ago, was quick to thank his team for making the victory possible. "I am really happy with the race," he said. "My team-mates did a really good job to get me into the perfect position." The day's events started with around 15,000 cyclists completing a 160km closed-road route, with Mayor of London Boris Johnson among those taking part but Demare won the first ever running of the 221km race. –AFP