The Dutch rider, 24, crossed the line alone at the end of the 153.3-kilometre trek from Darlington to Newcastle/Gateshead for an emotional victory.

The former world junior champion suffered life-threatening head injuries in a training crash in 2007.

He was in a coma for two weeks but has since overcome huge problems to make a comeback and this victory was his first since recovering.
 

Norwegian Alexander Kristoff held off compatriot Edvald Boasson Hagen, who is heading from Columbia HTC to Britain's Team Sky next year, for second spot.
 

Having won the opening stage in York yesterday, Australia's Chris Sutton came home in ninth place.
 

That allowed Reus to take over top spot in the overall standings, the 24-year-old reaping the benefits from his decision to join an early breakaway.
 

For the second day running Thomas De Gendt, Topsport Vlaanderen, moved away from the peleton, along with the eventual stage winner and Tanel Kangert.
 

Reus eventually decided to go it alone with less than 15km to the finish, taking the win by a nine-second margin.

Malcolm Elliot was the best placed of the domestic riders on the stage, finishing in seventh place in the same time as the chasing pack a result which also lifts him to ninth overall, while Russell Downing is currently the best-placed Briton on the general classification in sixth place, 25 seconds down on Reus.

The riders head 153.8km from Peebles to Gretna Green tomorrow.


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