Cycling-Cummings wins Tour of Britain

LONDON, Sept 11 ( Reuters) - Steve Cummings claimed overall victory in the Tour of Britain on Sunday after safely negotiating the eighth and final stage.

The Briton, riding for the African-based Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka outfit, was well protected by his colleagues, including Mark Cavendish, on the 100-km dash to London.

"There was a lot of pressure on me with the team having worked so hard and doing such a good job all week," Cummings, who rode at the Olympics after a strong Tour de France, said.

"Also, with Mark Cavendish sacrificing his chances at the Tour of Britain for me, anything other than a win would have been a failure. I am glad we managed to pull it off."

Cummings, who seized control on the second stage in the Lake District, finished 26 seconds ahead of Australia's Rohan Dennis ( BMC) and a further 12 ahead of Dutchman Tom Dumoulin (Giant-Alpecin) in the overall standings.

The final stage was won by Caleb Ewan (Orica-BikeExchange) who took a bunch sprint. (Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Clare Fallon)