Race directors of the prestigious Tour of Britain cycling event have allayed concerns the Suffolk stage of the tour will be jeopardised by potholes.

A Felixstowe resident, who did not wish to be named, feared the state of some roads in the town could endanger cyclists from around the world who will be visiting the town on Thursday, September 7 for stage 5 of the tour.

READ MORE: Road closures in Felixstowe ahead of Tour of Britain race

He said: "So Felixstowe has a stage of the Tour Britain cycle race, prime coverage for our lovely town, yet the main road they will be going flat out down has many deep potholes in it, the same diabolical surface that didn't help in the serious accident during the ladies race a couple of years back!?"

He called on the council to fill in the pot holes in the 'Victorian' road surfaces.

The iconic cycle race is returning to the county for the first time since 2017 and will feature 120 professional riders in 20 teams, while in previous years cycling stars such as Sir Bradley Wiggins, Mark Cavendish and Chris Froome have taken part.

READ MORE: Tour of Britain to come to Suffolk for stage in September

The event will be shown live on ITV4 and the Suffolk stage will begin and end in Felixstowe, passing through almost 200km of Suffolk countryside and the county's picturesque towns and villages.

This includes Kesgrave, Ipswich, Needham Market, Stowmarket, Hadleigh, Framlingham, Leiston and Woodbridge.

Colin Grogan, project officer for the Suffolk stage of the tour, said the race route director had driven the Suffolk route on at least three occasions over the last six months and had fed back any potential safety issues to Mr Grogan to pass to Suffolk County Council's Highways team to address.

However, he said the only concerns in Felixstowe had been over a couple of manhole covers at the junction of Sea Road and Undercliff Road West just beyond the finish line, which had "dropped a little" and needed levelling.

Mr Grogan said: "Whilst there are a few minor issues that need some attention before the stage next Thursday there have been no significant concerns raised by the route director about potholes and these endangering the riders on the route or when they leave and enter Felixstowe."