The men's road race was decided in a sprint involving three riders, Maurizio Fondriest, Claude Criquielion and Steve Bauer.

Unfortunately, at exactly that place, the barriers on the right hand side of the road (from the riders' perspective) were set up in an irregular manner by the organisers of the race, narrowing in width for about 1-1.5 meters.

However, since the frontal TV camera was placed at an angle at the left side of the road (from the riders' perspective) and not perpendicular, it seemed from that point of view as if Bauer moved to the right to block Criquielion.

Bauer was able to "jump" his bike about a meter to the left, a remarkable manoeuvre of riding skills, but as a result of this lost much speed, making it easy for Fondriest to overtake him and claim the world title.

No such fault was proven on the basis of detailed analysis of the TV coverage (including helicopter images), and Bauer was completely cleared.