The stage, from Wolverhampton to Birmingham, was won by Belgian Frederik Willems, with Mark Cavendish second and Paul Manning third.

They were part of an eight-man breakaway which escaped early in the stage and held off the peloton.

None of the eight were a threat to overall leader Martin Pedersen, who still leads by 51 seconds.

After the stage Manning was highly critical of the organisers as both Willems and Cavendish went the wrong way round a late roundabout because there was no barrier to prevent them from doing so.

"It's not good enough. It's meant to be an ambitious tour but that was a disgrace," fumed Manning.

"I've said to the race director, 'why do I bother riding my bike if you're going to mess up the finish'.

"It's got to be clear for the riders."

The tour's technical director Mick Bennett admitted: "The barrier should have been there," but declined to comment further.

Stage four result:
1. Frederik Willems (Bel) Chocolade Jacques-Topsport 2hr 54min 12sec
2. Mark Cavendish (GB) T-Mobile at 2secs
3. Paul Manning (GB) Landbouwkrediet-Colnago at 6secs
4. Juan Manuel Garate (Sp) QuickStep-Innergetic at 13secs
5. Geraint Thomas (GB) Team Great Britain at 15secs

General classification:
1. Martin Pedersen (Den) CSC 15hrs 25mins 56secs
2. Luis Pasamontes (Sp) Unibet.com at 51secs
3. Filippo Pozzato (It) QuickStep-Innergetic 2:11
4. Michael Rogers (Aus) T-Mobile 2:46
5. Nick Nuyens (Bel) QuickStep-Innergetic 2:47