Sports dad arrested for insane act that caused chaos to cycling race

The father of a cyclist competing in the Tour Cycliste Antenne Reunion has been arrested and fined after a crazy act of misguided revenge.

The tour on the French territory of Reunion Island off the east coast of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean has been shocked by the deliberate attempt by a spectator to cause serious injury to several members of the peloton.

Jean-Bernard Boyer, the father of French rider Jonathan Boyer, caused carnage on the first stage ride from Saint Denis to Le Port in a reported act of revenge for an earlier crash involving his son.

Jonathan Boyer was involved in a nasty crash on the second day of the event when he and rival Enzo Bernard were sprinting side by side before they became tangled up.

Boyer hit the railing on the side of the track and fell hard after hitting a security barrier.

Boyer is still recovering in a local hospital after needing treatment for concussion and broken ribs. A child spectator also needed treatment after the tip of his thumb was severed as he stood at the barrier the two cyclists crashed into.

Bernard has since been fined $190 by event organisers and disqualified from the event, but his apparent act of recklessness is nothing compared to Jean-Bernard Boyer's response to the incident.

After demanding Tour officials cancel the race as a result of his son's injury, Jean-Bernard Boyer took matters into his own hands when told the race would be continuing.

A video posted on Twitter by a French journalist shows Jean-Bernard Boyer picking up the spectator barrier around 100m before the stage finish line and moving it into the middle of the road immediately before the lead group of riders arrive at the scene.

According to reports six riders were involved in crashes after hitting the pulled-down fence or unsuccessfully trying to detour around the obstacle.

The video shows two riders falling heavily after riding straight into the metal barrier.

A South African rider reportedly suffered a broken collar bone in the chaos.

Event officials released a statement to declare the stage was cancelled and no official times will be recorded from the ride.

"In view of the exceptionally serious and anti-sporting case and the impossibility of classifying the riders, the race jury decided with the race director to cancel the first stage," the statement said.

The official statement also declared Jean-Bernard Boyer has been fined $440.

According to reports he was arrested by local police.

There are also conflicting reports that Jean-Bernard Boyer has been released by police, but is still expected to face a court hearing this week.