JUST about one thing could have seen the cancellation of the much-vaunted Tour of Britain from coming to the Isle of Wight on Sunday — and it happened — the sad passing of Her Majesty the Queen.

While it was a major disappointment for the Island and not reaping the many benefits it would have brought — tourism and sporting kudos especially — the Queen’s death put everything into sharp perspective.

However, a return of the Tour of Britain to the Island has not been ruled out by its organisers — but any hope of encouragement and confirmation looks some way off at the moment.

Nick Bull, of the Tour of Britain, was asked if the Island was being considered again as a venue for the popular multi-stage event.

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He said: “We’d certainly love to, but there are a lot of moving parts to all this. We are keeping in contact with our stakeholders on the Isle of Wight.

“Amid all the uncertainty since the tragic events of last week, there is a heck of a lot to sort out.”

When asked if the Island was part of any future planning for the Tour of Britain, or under consideration as a stage venue, Nick kept his cards quite firmly to his chest.

He added: “It’s far too early to say at this stage. No timetables have been made and there are no guarantees.” 

Much of the Island’s sports were suspended last weekend, including the local football and Wessex League programmes, as a mark of respect.

There is, however, a full return to football on Saturday, ahead of the Queen’s funeral on Monday.

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And fans of Southampton, Portsmouth and other league teams, except those affected by policing issues in London, can travel away knowing their games are on.

The GKN Charity Sportive cycling event from East Cowes last cancelled last Saturday, due to be rescheduled for spring next year, while the popular annual Brambles cricket match, due to be played at Brambles Bank, Cowes, on Monday, was postponed until, provisionally, Sunday, October 9.

As an alternative mark of respect for the Queen, some sports events went ahead.

The Isle of Wight Fell Series went ahead from Ventnor seafront last weekend, albeit with much reduced entry numbers.

The Medina IOW Parkrun went ahead as usual at Seaclose Park, Newport, on Saturday morning.

In the afternoon, Sandown and Shanklin RFC got their Counties 2 Hampshire season underway with a home game against New Milton — preceded by a period of silence in respect of the Queen.