This is the moment a van driver was told he had killed a Team GB triathlete after ploughing into her during a cycling race.

Mother-of-two Rebecca Comins, 52, lost her life in a cycling event during a time trial on a bright day in South Wales when she was hit by Vasile Barbu, 50.

Video from BBC’s The Crash Detectives shows the delivery driver placing his head in his hands and swaying back and forth after being informed by officers that Mrs. Comins did not survive the accident.

Barbu, hailing from Abergavenny, stated to the police he was unaware he had hit a cyclist, assuming the sound was a package falling in his van.

However, investigators later determined that Mrs. Comins, who had a bright blinking light on her bicycle, could be seen clearly for at least 18 seconds before the deadly incident.

Barbu reported to officers that he noticed her only moments before the collision and did not attempt to pass her on the A40 near Raglan until he was merely two meters from her rear wheel.

He had previously phoned 999 after the crash and told an operator: ‘Hello, I’ve knocked one bicyclist. Quick please’.

Asked to confirm what had happened, Barbu said: ‘I driving… and I knock at her.’

He has now been jailed for four years for causing death by dangerous driving. 

Vasile Barbu, 50, struck the Team GB athlete with his van on the A40 in South Wales in 2022, before being informed she had died at the scene

Rebecca Comins, 52, was taking part in a time trial event on a dual carriageway when she was shunted off her bike by courier Vasile Barbu

Barbu, 50, told police he had no idea he had ploughed into the mother-of-two and thought a noise from the crash was a parcel falling in his van

The police footage captures the moment officers gave Barbu the devastating news, prompting him to slump, bury his head in his hands, and mutter while rocking back and forth, before being detained and placed in a police vehicle.

But when questioned at the police station, he continued to deny any wrongdoing.

Emergency services had rushed to the scene of the crash but, despite the best efforts of paramedics, Mrs Comins could not be saved.

‘Are you responsible for careless driving today?’ an officer asks Barbu.

‘I don’t think I am, no,’ the courier responds. 

He said: ‘I see it [the cyclist]. I give her space. I take myself around… to pass her. And I heard a knock’.

Barbu told officers that he believed at the time that this sound was simply one of the parcels in his vehicle falling. 

It was only when he stopped the van and got out that he saw Mrs Comins on the side of the road, he added. 

Other video footage from the scene showed extensive damage to her bike, including a hole in her back wheel.

Sergeant Cath Raine said: ‘She was doing everything that she could to be safe; to be visible.

She said Barbu made a ‘catastrophic misjudgement’ adding: ‘an innocent cyclist has paid for that misjudgement with her life.’

The investigation into her tragic death is featured on BBC Wales show The Crash Detectives, after Barbu was jailed for four years after being convicted of causing death by dangerous driving last year.

Sgt Raine’s calculations showed Mrs Comins was visible for at least 18.5 seconds and should have been easy to spot as she was pedalling hard.

Barbu’s reaction to being told Ms Comins had died was captured on footage used by the BBC’s The Crash Investigators programme

Mrs Comins was riding on a clear sunny day and had a bright flashing light attached to her bike when she was sent flying into the air

In a victim impact statement Mrs Comins’ son George said he had competed in the event alongside his mother and represented Wales and Team GB alongside her but had not ridden his time trial bike since her tragic death

 She said: ‘Because we know that she’s going uphill, because we know that she’s accelerating, she must have been pedalling.

‘Pedalling, so biological motion, draws attention.

‘It’s one of the things that would have made it easier for any driver following her to be able to see that she was there.’

Barbu’s van was half a tonne overweight at the time of the crash, police found. 

Asked at interview why he had seen the cyclist yet still collided with her, Barbu told police officers: ‘I don’t know. I don’t know what happened. I really don’t know why.’ 

He added he would ask himself why he had hit her for his ‘whole life’. 

A court heard Barbu had an empty lane of a dual carriageway that he could have moved into to avoid the collision but instead went straight into the back of her.

Judge Shoman Khan told him: ‘You could very easily have moved to the outside lane to overtake her as other drivers had.

‘You could, and should, have given her far more space. You could, and should, have given yourself far more time.’

The judge said the only ‘sensible conclusion’ was that Barbu had made a ‘catastrophic decision to overtake at the last second’ and ploughed into the back of Mrs Comins’ bike.

‘Only you know why you failed to carry out what should have been a very simple manoeuvre,’ he said.

‘She was there to be seen, she was there to be seen for many seconds. This was not, I am sure, an emergency situation. It should have been a routine overtaking manoeuvre.’

In a victim impact statement Mrs Comins’ son George said he had competed in the event alongside his mother and represented Wales and Team GB alongside her but had not ridden his time trial bike since her tragic death.

In a tribute, Mrs Comins’ family said she was a ‘wonderful’ wife and mother to husband Stephen and children George and Millie.

Barbu was seen rocking back and forth upon learning that the triathlete had not survived

After being arrested (pictured) Barbu claimed he had seen Mrs Comins just ‘seconds’ before crashing into her

The judge said the only ‘sensible conclusion’ was that Barbu had made a ‘catastrophic decision to overtake at the last second’ and ploughed into the back of Mrs Comins’ bike

They added: ‘Beckie was incredibly kind and an inspiration to so many. Her impact on the lives of people throughout the local and sporting community has become especially evident by the abundance of tributes and memories shared since her death.

Mrs Comins had been taking part in a time trial cycling race with warning signs in place and other cyclists on the road when the tragedy happened.

Cyclists set off at one minute intervals along the A40 dual carriageway near Raglan, South Wales, in the event organised by local club Monmouthshire Wheelers.

Another participant told how moments before the fatal collision Barbu passed so close to his bike he was ‘buzzed’ by the white Vauxhall Movano van and the wind turbulence caused him to wobble across the road.

Prosecutor James Wilson said: ‘Rebecca Comins was there to be seen. Visibility was good, she was cycling with a bright rear light so was clearly obvious to other witnesses.

‘Her presence on that road was not unexpected. Barbu would have seen the road signs for the cycling event taking place and would have passed other similar cyclists before he reached Mrs Comins.

‘She was cycling in a proper manner and correctly positioned on the road. She was on a long, straight stretch of road with plenty of time for him to see her.

‘Further he had space in the outside lane to move into and safely manoeuvre around her and to avoid colliding. He instead directly hit Mrs Comins from behind.

‘This was not a momentary misjudgement or lack of concentration.’

Tributes were paid to Rebecca, known as Beckie, who was the Vintage Veteran Champion of the Welsh Triathlon Super Series at the time of her death in June 2022 and had represented Wales the weekend before the crash.

In a statement, Welsh Triathlon said: ‘Becky was a fierce competitor, but with it had a positivity and energy that was infectious.

‘Becky was a multiple Ironman Wales finisher and also represented the Great Britain Age Group Team at the European Championships in Tartu 2018, as well as at the World Championships in Lausanne in 2019, finishing competitively in both.

‘She loved the sport; she loved the training and Becky was central to any social activities across her clubs.

‘Becky will be sadly missed by everyone within our triathlon community, and we extend our deepest sympathies to Becky’s family, Steve, George and Millie and her wider friends at this sad time.’

She was a member of the Dragon Tri Club, Newport Phoenix Cycling Club and Caldicot Running Club.

Barbu was jailed for four years and handed an additional two year driving ban. 

Crash Detectives: The Last Ride – will be shown at 7pm tonight on BBC One Wales, BBC Two England, and BBC iPlayer