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Mark Cavendish of the Deceuninck Quick-Step team celebrates as he crosses the finish line to win the 13th stage of the Tour de Frances

Mark Cavendish equals Merckx’s record with 34th Tour de France stage win

  • British rider’s acceleration helps him triumph in stage 13
  • Simon Yates among riders forced to abandon after crash

Mark Cavendish equalled the long-standing Tour de France stage win record, held by the five-times winner Eddy Merckx, with the 34th stage win of his career that ended in Carcassonne on Friday.

Once again the 36-year-old Cavendish, wiping away the sweat and the tears, confounded those who had written him off, after snatching his fourth win in this year’s race having almost quit the sport at the end of 2020.

“I don’t think I can ever be compared to the great Eddy Merckx, the greatest male road cyclist of all time,” he said, “but I think to equal him with the record number of stage victories, for people who don’t follow cycling a lot, is something they can understand and put into perspective. If that inspires them to get on a bike, because a British rider has done that, then it’s the biggest thing I can take from it.”

The defending Tour champion, Tadej Pogacar, who held on to his race lead after another tricky stage, punctuated by crashes, admitted that he had watched Cavendish “as a kid”.

“What he is doing now is really crazy,” the Slovenian said. “All respect to him.”

Merckx, speaking to the Italian media, was less impressed. “Of course there’s a difference between us,” the Belgian, now 76, said. “I won 34 Tour stages by winning sprints, in the mountains, in time trials and going on the attack on the descents. Let’s not forget the five yellow jerseys I’ve got at home plus the 96 days I wore it. Does that not seem much?”

Cavendish described his memorable win in Carcassonne as “one of the hardest”. He said: “I never go too well in the heat and today was hot, with heavy roads. It was just nervous and there was a slightly uphill drag on the last kilometre and that’s not ideal for me as a punchy sprinter. The drag uphill in a big gear was not meant for short legs.”

But despite his dislike of discussing the stage win record, Cavendish admitted that his momentous win had been his most demanding success since the start of the race in Brittany on 26 June.

“It’s part and parcel of being a leader,” he said, “shouldering the responsibility for the success of the team. It’s not just having the legs to sprint, it’s having the head to deal with the pressure. Ironically sprinters probably do the least amount of work of anybody in the team at the Tour de France, and in most cases they get paid the most money, except for the guys who can finish in the top 10 overall.”

“But that’s what you get paid for,” Cavendish said, “to shoulder those expectations. Even if the team doesn’t deliver, you’re expected to deliver. My team delivers every single time and that puts the pressure on me. Sometimes that can be hard especially if you don’t feel great.”

Cavendish’s winning streak began in 2008. Over the years he has suffered droughts, although nothing compared with the years in the wilderness, isolated by illness and poor form, that his current winning streak in Fougères ended, 10 days ago.

“I wish all the teammates I have had since 2008 were here to share this with me. But we still have work to do. It gets hard again tomorrow and we don’t have time to reflect on it. There’s plenty of time after this Tour de France to reflect on what we have done and the history we’ve made.”

Cavendish also addressed his sometimes difficult relationship with the media. “I’m not going to lie – I think sometimes I have been personally picked at, but on the same level, I have also been a prick,” Cavendish said. “That’s what happens when you’re young. For many years I suffered the consequences of being brash and young and without an education of how to behave with the media.

“As you grow older and you have a family and responsibility, you learn how to behave and unfortunately some people didn’t want to let go of what I was like when I was younger, even though I had changed. It maybe took time away for me to get that chip off my shoulder. I’m a grown-up now: I’m not a 20-year old-boy who wanted to fight the world.”

On his way to his record equalling sprint in Carcassonne, Cavendish survived a mass crash, a late bike change and the injuries of his team-mate, Tim Declercq, one of the fallers in the crash that forced Simon Yates’s withdrawal from this year’s Tour. The crash came with 62 kilometres remaining, as the peloton picked up speed and descended alongside a wooded ravine.

As some, including Yates, fell hard on the rough road, others tumbled into the trees and disappeared from view. The British Team Bike Exchange rider sat on the road for several minutes, briefly remounting, before quitting the race.

Not for the first time Ineos Grenadiers’ Geraint Thomas was also among the fallers. The Welshman, winner of the Tour in 2018, was distanced by the speeding peloton in the final few kilometres as, ahead of him, the sprint teams picked up pace and Cavendish delivered for his own team yet again.

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Mark Cavendish wins record-tying 34th career stage in Tour de France

  • Associated Press

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CARCASSONNE, France -- Mark Cavendish won a mass sprint Friday to equal cycling great Eddy Merckx's record of 34 stage wins at the Tour de France.

Taking part in cycling's biggest race for the first time since 2018, the 36-year-old Cavendish has been dominating the sprints this summer. The British rider posted his fourth stage win in this year's edition by winning Stage 13, which finished in the southern city of Carcassonne.

"I haven't realized it," he said when asked about the record. "It's still just another win on the Tour de France. It's like my first one. I've won a stage of the Tour de France. It's what I dreamed of as a kid and it's what I dream of now. I've worked so hard for it."

Cavendish secured a new contract with his former Deceuninck Quick Step team for the 2021 season after returning from a bout of depression and several seasons of struggles on and off the bike. But he was not expected to ride in the Tour and did not train specifically for the three-week race. He was a late call-up last month as a replacement for Sam Bennett, the best sprinter of last year's Tour.

Cavendish has never won the overall Tour de France. Merckx won it five times.

Known as "The Manx Missile'' as he comes from the Isle of Man, Cavendish jostled for position in the last two kilometers to stay on the wheel of lead-out man Michael Morkov. He looked trapped in traffic with 300 meters left but zigzagged to the front and comfortably won ahead of Morkov. Jasper Philipsen was third.

"I can't even think about [the record]. I'm afraid I'm so dead after 220 kilometers in that heat, that wind and that finale,'' Cavendish said. "I went deep, I went so deep there. The boys were incredible. I can't believe it. A lot of the day it didn't feel like it, but it had to happen because I had the guys riding like they were. I was so on the limit there.''

There was no significant change in the general classification as race leader Tadej Pogacar enjoyed a quiet day in the peloton. Pogacar kept his 5:18 lead over second-placed Rigoberto Uran, with Jonas Vingegaard in third, 5:33 off the pace.

The race animated immediately with a flurry of attacks in the early stages of the 220-kilometer trek in southern France. But Cavendish's teammates set a fast tempo at the front to prevent large group of riders from breaking away, determined to ensure a mass sprint in the end.

They responded to every dangerous move and relaxed only when a trio of riders formed, knowing that it would be impossible for them to beat the chase of the pack later in the day.

Omer Goldstein, Pierre Latour and Sean Bennett worked well together but were kept on a tight leash.

In the shadow of large plane trees scattered across the route through the Languedoc vineyards, the leading trio was reduced to a pair when Latour and Goldstein dropped Bennett. They were reined in with 50 kilometers left after a crash involving dozens of riders briefly split the peloton. British cyclist Simon Yates, the 2018 Spanish Vuelta champion, was among those who hit the ground and abandoned.

Frenchman Quentin Pacher then launched an ill-fated solo effort to build a lead of more than a minute before Deceuninck Quick Step riders dramatically sped up the pace to swallow him about 19 kilometers from the finish.

Mark Cavendish Abandons 2023 Tour de France on Stage 8

The Manx Missile will end his career tied with Eddy Merckx for the all-time Tour de France stage wins record.

110th tour de france 2023 stage 2

Mark Cavendish abandoned the 2023 Tour de France after a Stage 8 crash, prematurely ending his final Tour. Cavendish is tied with Eddy Merckx at 34 Tour de France stage wins—the most in history.

Cavendish was involved in a crash in the peloton and was lying on the ground, holding his clavicle. He was unable to finish the stage and officially made the decision to withdraw.

His abandonment comes one day after Cavendish nearly won a Stage 7 sprint, but an apparent mechanical issue cost him a shot at sole possession of the record.

Cavendish, now 38, broke into professional cycling in 2005. A few years later, he won his first Tour de France stage on Stage 5. He added three more stage victories during that 2008 Tour, establishing himself as the premiere sprinter in the world. In 2011, he won both the green jersey points competition at the Tour de France and the rainbow jersey as world champion.

Cav won TdF stages in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, and 2021. In 2021, Cavendish enjoyed a comeback season, winning three stages to tie with Merckx for the all-time record.

In 2022, Cavendish was left off the Deceuninck–Quick-Step team for the Tour de France in a controversial decision by team manager Patrick Lefevere, so he didn’t get his shot to break Merckx’ record. He left the Quick-Step squad at the end of last year, and after months of contract speculation, he signed with Astana Qazaqstan for the 2023 season.

Dan is a writer and editor living in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and before coming to Runner’s World and Bicycling was an editor at MileSplit. He competed in cross country and track and field collegiately at DeSales University.

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Mark cavendish wins 31st tour de france stage after 3-year absence.

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FOUGERES, France (AP) — This time, they were happy tears.

In October last year, Mark Cavendish posted an insignificant 74th place at the Belgian classic Gent-Wevelgem. Depressed and dejected, with his contract with the Bahrain McLaren team almost over, the sprinter from the Isle of Man suggested in an emotional post-race interview it could well have been his final race.

On Tuesday at the Tour de France, the tears of sadness made way for those of happiness after the “Manx Missile” posted a 31st stage win at cycling’s biggest event.

“Just being here is special enough. I didn’t think I would ever get to come back to this race,” said Cavendish, the greatest sprinter in the race’s history.

The 36-year-old veteran sat on the road and cried after his triumph in the fourth stage. He was congratulated by teammates, who worked hard in the stage finale to put Cavendish in an excellent position for the sprint.

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“You just see what a great team this is. You’ve got the green jersey, the world champion Julian Alaphilippe coming to do the final pull just to try to catch the breakaway, putting everything in,” Cavendish said. “So many people didn’t believe in me but these guys do.”

After all the doubts about his future, Cavendish secured a new contract with his former Deceuninck-Quick Step team. He convinced manager Patrick Lefevere he could perform at the top level again but he was not expected to ride at the Tour and did not train specifically for the three-week race.

He received a last-minute call-up earlier this month, as a replacement for Sam Bennett, the best sprinter of last year’s Tour.

“Three weeks ago I would not have imagined this,” said Cavendish, who is back at the Tour for the first time since 2018.

Lefevere’s bet paid off in the town of Fougeres, where Cavendish had already won in 2015. With a perfectly timed burst of speed — he reached an average speed of 63 kph (39 mph) in the last 500 meters — Cavendish edged Frenchman Nacer Bouhanni and Jasper Philipsen of Belgium.

Cavendish is second on the all-time list for the most stage wins behind Belgian great Eddy Merckx on 34. Cavendish’s previous stage win dated back to 2016.

Cavendish took a break from cycling after being diagnosed with the Epstein-Barr virus for the second time in 2018. The former world champion enjoyed a resurgence earlier this season with five stage wins after returning to Deceuninck-Quick Step.

Mathieu van der Poel kept the race leader’s yellow jersey with an eight-second lead over Alaphilippe ahead of Wednesday’s first time trial.

Riders staged a protest at the start of the 93.4-mile flat stage to complain about perceived dangerous racing conditions after a flurry of crashes in the previous days reignited the issue of road safety.

Having left the town of Redon in the western Brittany region to start Stage 4, the peloton rode at a moderate pace and all riders got off their bikes after about one kilometer. They waited silently for about a minute before hitting the road again.

After the crash-filled Stage 3, several riders have criticized race organizers for setting up what they considered a dangerous finale to a Tour stage, especially in the early days of the race when nervousness is at its highest level.

An early breakaway formed soon after the protest as Tour debutant Bret Van Moer and Pierre-Luc Perichon moved away from the pack. They collaborated well and had a maximum lead of more than three minutes before the peloton stepped up the pace.

Van Moer dropped Perichon with 14 kilometers left in a final shot at glory and produced a powerful effort to resist the peloton’s chase until the last 100 meters.

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Mark Cavendish crashes out of Tour de France, missing outright record for stage wins

The Associated Press

mark cavendish tour de france siege

Britain's Mark Cavendish (right) smiles prior to the fourth stage of the Tour de France in Nogaro, France on Tuesday. The ace sprinter crashed out of the race during the eighth stage on Saturday. Thibault Camus/AP hide caption

Britain's Mark Cavendish (right) smiles prior to the fourth stage of the Tour de France in Nogaro, France on Tuesday. The ace sprinter crashed out of the race during the eighth stage on Saturday.

LIMOGES, France — Mark Cavendish will have to share the record for most career stage wins at the Tour de France.

Competing in his final season, the ace sprinter crashed out of the race during the eighth stage on Saturday with a suspected collarbone fracture.

Cavendish equaled Eddy Merckx's record of 34 stage wins during the 2021 Tour, 13 years after his first success, but was not selected last year.

This edition was his last chance to become the outright record-holder after he announced in May during the Giro d'Italia that he will retire from cycling at the end of this season. Cavendish ended the Giro in style, winning the final stage in the historic center of Rome to post his 17th stage win at the Italian Grand Tour.

Known as "The Manx Missile" as he's from the Isle of Man, Cavendish was second in Friday's seventh stage.

Jonas Vingegaard wins the men's Tour de France

Jonas Vingegaard wins the men's 2022 Tour de France

The 38-year-old former world champion crashed with 64 kilometers left while riding at the back of the peloton at about 45 kph (28 mph). TV images showed the veteran rider lying on the ground and holding his right shoulder in pain.

Cavendish's teammate, Gianni Moscon, said he had to brake suddenly because of a crash in front of him "and someone changed line and he just hit the rear wheel of the guy in front of him and went down."

"It was quite bad," Mosconi added. "I stayed with him but he wasn't able to go on with the race so we had to go back in the peloton."

Cavendish went into an ambulance for treatment and looked ashen-faced before his retirement from the race was announced.

Just like life, riding my bike doesn't always make sense. But that's why I love it

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Just like life, riding my bike doesn't always make sense. but that's why i love it.

Merckx amassed his wins in the 1960s and 70s, an era during which his domination was such that he earned the nickname "The Cannibal." Unlike Merckx, who won a record five Tours, Cavendish has never won and specialized in the sprints.

His speed, prowess and longevity among his fellow sprinters have no equal at the Tour.

"It's so sad for a legend to finish the Tour like this," said former world champion Mads Pedersen, who won Saturday's stage in a mass sprint. "For me it was a pleasure to be able to ride with Mark Cavendish. I always had a good relationship with him in the peloton. Hopefully I can do some of the last races he does."

Cavendish became the fifth rider to abandon this year after Enric Mas, Richard Carapaz, Jacopo Guarnieri and Luis Leon Sanchez, who all crashed out. That became six toward the end of Saturday's stage when Belgian rider Steff Cras was caught in yet another pileup and retired.

After more than 30 years, a multiday women's Tour de France is back

After more than 30 years, a multiday women's Tour de France is back

Cavendish was not selected for last year's Tour by his former Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl team and joined the Astana-Qazaqstan team in January to extend his storied career by one season, hoping he would add at least one more more stage win.

Cavendish also won the Tour de France best sprinter's green jersey twice. He has won stages at all three Grand Tours — Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, Spanish Vuelta — and became a world champion in 2011.

"It's really, really, a shame. Everybody wanted to see him go for one more win," two-time Tour champion Tadej Pogacar said.

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Where’s Cav? Mark Cavendish and His Tour de France Dream Hits Nightmare Spring

Astana-qazaqstan unable to confirm manxman’s race program after milan-torino dnf continues illness-cursed early season..

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DNS, OTL, and DNF mark a series of potholes in Mark Cavendish ’s spring palmarès as he rides toward the Tour de France and his attempt to write history with “Project 35”.

Cavendish abandoned the bunch during the final hours of Milan-Torino on Wednesday to continue a torrid early spring for the veteran sprint king.

Team Astana Qazaqstan is now playing “wait and see” before deciding what’s next.

“At the moment we are not ready to confirm his exact program,” a team representative told Velo after Milan-Torino. “He had a small gastrointestinal discomfort today, but it should not be a problem for his next races.”

Also read: Is Cavendish on track for Tour de France success?

The Manx enjoyed a hot start to his Tour de France-focused season with victory on race day 4 at the Tour of Colombia.

Sickness struck the 38-year-old cold and out of contention since then.

He was out of the mix amid a pack of his Tour de France sprint foes through both the recent UAE Tour and Tirreno-Adriatico in a run of results that puts pressure on his chase for Tour de France history.

Astana Qazaqstan’s missile left the “Sprinter Super Bowl” of the UAE Tour early with a fever in his system and a “DNS” on the books.

Cavendish’s race across Italy in “The Race Between Two Seas” ended equally anonymously last week when he and his leadout man Michael Mørkøv were “OTL” after they failed to meet the time cut on stage 5.

#Infirmerie / Mark Cavendish (AST), malgré une victoire en Colombie, reste sur triste lancée : ▪ Milano Torino : DNF ▪ Tirreno-Adriatico St. 5 : OTL ▪ UAE Tour St. 6 : DNS https://t.co/CLGZfWlHhk — Renaud Breban (@RenaudB31) March 13, 2024

The Tour de France Grand Départ is still more than three months down the line and Cavendish has time to re-sight his scopes after a misfiring spring.

Nonetheless, the recent Tirreno-Torino block of racing had been touted as a key form-builder for Cavendish in his second season with Astana-Qazaqstan.

“For sure the directors and the management would like results, but that didn’t happen here,” Renshaw told Velo from the UAE Tour. “So we look to the next block [i.e, Tirreno-Adriatico, Milan Torino, ed].”

This month’s Italian races were on Cavendish’s schedule to oil the wheels on his newly padded leadout train and put fire into the sprinter’s shoes before the bigger prizes of summer.

Cavendish will be hitting the Lemsip and looking to shake his sicknesses before the countdown to the Tour de France clicks forward much further.

The 38-year-old was next slated to race Scheldeprijs – a classic he won three times at the turn of last decade – on April 4 before he built his Tour de France form at the Tour of Hungary in May.

Altitude camps were likely to fall on either side of the Hungary tour as Cavendish and his recently reinstated trainer Vasilis Anastopoulos attempt to implement the winning framework from their four-win Tour with Deceuninck Quick-Step in 2021.

For now, those plans are “TBD” while Cavendish shakes his sickness.

“Mark got a cold in Tirreno and is still suffering from it, so we’ll wait to see how it evolves,” Anastopoulos told Velo on Thursday.

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Ace sprinter Mark Cavendish delays retirement to chase outright record for Tour de France stage wins

FILE - Stage winner Britain's Mark Cavendish celebrates on the podium after the fourteenth stage of the Tour de France, in Villars-les-Dombes, France, Saturday, July 16, 2016. Mark Cavendish wants another go at the record for most career stage wins at the Tour de France he shares with Eddy Merckx. After announcing his retirement earlier this year, the ace sprinter has backpedaled and will compete with the Astana Qazaqstan team for one more season. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, File)

FILE - Stage winner Britain’s Mark Cavendish celebrates on the podium after the fourteenth stage of the Tour de France, in Villars-les-Dombes, France, Saturday, July 16, 2016. Mark Cavendish wants another go at the record for most career stage wins at the Tour de France he shares with Eddy Merckx. After announcing his retirement earlier this year, the ace sprinter has backpedaled and will compete with the Astana Qazaqstan team for one more season. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, File)

FILE - Britain’s Mark Cavendish, wearing the best sprinter’s green jersey, follows Slovenia’s Tadej Pogacar, wearing the overall leader’s yellow jersey, right, during the twenty-first and last stage of the Tour de France cycling race over 108.4 kilometers (67.4 miles) with start in Chatou and finish on the Champs Elysees in Paris, France,Sunday, July 18, 2021. Mark Cavendish wants another go at the record for most career stage wins at the Tour de France he shares with Eddy Merckx. After announcing his retirement earlier this year, the ace sprinter has backpedaled and will compete with the Astana Qazaqstan team for one more season. (AP Photo/Daniel Cole, File)

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mark cavendish tour de france siege

BRUSSELS (AP) — Veteran sprinter Mark Cavendish wants another go at becoming the outright record-holder for most career stage wins at the Tour de France.

Cavendish equaled cycling great Eddy Merckx’s record of 34 stage wins during the 2021 Tour, 13 years after his first success, and came close to winning a 35th in the seventh stage of the 2023 edition.

After announcing his retirement earlier this year , Cavendish has now backpedaled and will compete with the Astana Qazaqstan team for one more season, including the Tour.

“I was looking forward to not having to get up and train in any weather condition and not be away from home; spend time with the kids,” the 38-year-old Cavendish said on Wednesday. “Ultimately, I’d miss racing. I love racing. But I was happy, I was in a happy place, and I knew I could go out on top. Obviously, it wasn’t the finish I hoped for, crashing at the Tour de France.”

Cavendish, the most successful sprinter in the race history, crashed during the eighth stage of cycling’s premium race this summer, breaking his right collarbone. The injury required surgery and Cavendish has not raced since.

Belgium's Jasper Philipsen, center, winner of the Milan to Sanremo cycling race, poses with second placed Australia's Michael Matthews, left, and third placed Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar in San Remo, Italy, Saturday, March 16, 2024. (Gian Mattia D'Alberto/LaPresse via AP)

Known as “The Manx Missile” as he’s from the Isle of Man, Cavendish had first rejected team manager Alexander Vinokourov’s proposal to extend their partnership for one extra year, discouraged by the efforts required to come back from yet another injury.

But Cavendish said speaking with his children offered another perspective.

“I spoke to the kids and I said, ‘What should dad do?’ They said, ‘Carry on.’ It was an odd question. So, here we are – just one more year, hey?” Cavendish said.

Vinokourov also played a role in the reversal.

“I asked Mark if in a few years he would regret that he did not try again, and, in turn, suggested to reconsider his decision,” Vinokourov said. “In the end Mark agreed. It won’t be easy to better the record he shares with Eddie Merckx, it would be an historic achievement.”

Merckx amassed his wins in the 1960s and 70s, an era during which his domination was such that he earned the nickname “The Cannibal.” Unlike Merckx, who won a record five Tours, Cavendish, who specializes in the sprints, has never won the overall title.

Cavendish has completed 206 stages, winning 16.5% of them, according to statistics provided by Tour de France organizers. His speed, prowess and longevity among his fellow sprinters have no equal at the Tour.

Cavendish also won the Tour de France best sprinter’s green jersey twice. He has won stages at all three Grand Tours — Tour de France, Giro d’Italia, Spanish Vuelta — and became a world champion in 2011.

Cavendish joined Astana Qazaqstan this year after his contract with Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl expired and being overlooked for the 2022 edition of the Tour.

“While this season Mark’s arrival in the team was quite unexpected, then for the next year we are preparing thoroughly, seriously reviewing the squad, strengthening the sprint direction, making personnel changes,” Vinokourov said.

Cavendish’s hopes of winning another stage at the Tour received an immediate boost as his team also announced the signing of Michael Morkov. The experienced Danish rider was Cavendish’s lead-out man when he equaled Merckx’s record.

AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/apf-sports

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Mark Cavendish ‘devastated’ as 35th Tour de France stage win slips through his fingers

Manxman suffers mechanical in Bordeaux as Jasper Philipsen grabs third stage win of the race

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Mark Cavendish

Mark Cavendish said he was ‘devastated’ as a record breaking 35th Tour de France stage win slipped through his fingers in Bordeaux on Friday afternoon. 

The Astana-Qazaqstan rider recorded his best result yet at this year’s Tour - second behind Jasper Philipsen - but was left bitterly disappointed after the Belgian powered past him within metres of the line. Cavendish bettered his performances in Bayonne and Nogaro , but it was still not enough to beat a flying Philipsen. Speaking to the media outside the Astana team bus in Bordeaux, Cavendish explained that he was “frustrated” as he had suffered mechanical issues with his bike in the closing metres which affected his sprint as he jumped for the line. “The boys did good, they were incredible,” he said. “I jumped when I wanted to but unfortunately I had a problem with my gears when I was sprinting. I went from the 11 to the 12, and then back to the 11. “I'm pretty devastated actually. The boys did good, I got a good jump, but in those situations it's just not meant to be. By 30, 40m to go, I already had to sit down and stand up again, and my gears were jumping. It's not belief then, it's hope. It is what it is, we try again.” Cavendish piled praise on his Astana teammates for their perfectly timed leadout, saving special mention for Cees Bol’s contribution which very nearly brought the victory. “Cees was amazing,” Cavendish added. “He's like an assassin. He does what he needs to do, smoothly. Cees is pretty amazing. He was there, moving me up, he knows that he has to work earlier than the actual leadout to get me into position, and he'll do that. He did perfectly to get me on the right wheels going into the last km. It was just a case of timing when I jumped.” When asked if he has the speed to eventually get the better of Philipsen in this edition of the Tour, the Astana man explained he was full of belief in his own capabilities. Cavendish also explained that a few teams may have been unhappy with the Belgian’s sprint as the peloton surged into Bordeaux; Philipsen was upheld as the winner. “I think so [has the speed to beat Philipsen]. I'd imagine, there might be a couple of teams protesting against Philipsen anyway today,” Cavendish said. “He didn't impede me at all, so it's not for me to discuss.

“I was in quite a good position, I was far back, but I was ok and where I wanted to be. It was a long straight finish. Cees [Bol] moved me up with good speed into the last kilometre. I was on the right wheels.”

As he analysed the closing metres of the race, the Manxman explained that he timed his final kick for the line to a similar point as to where he made a similar jump when he last won in Bordeaux in the Tour, back in 2010. “I kicked a little earlier than I liked, but it was about the same time that I did in 2010,” he explained. “Once I kicked, my gears jumped and the cadence was whacked up. There's nothing you could do except try and hope. “I'm bitterly disappointed there, like really majorly disappointed but we keep on trying.”

Cavendish will get another chance in Moulins on stage 11, with the Manxman unlikely to feature on a lumpy stage eight on Friday to Limoges. History still waits.

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Tom is a News and Features Writer at Cycling Weekly. Since joining the team he has reported from races and events across the world including the Tour de France and World Championships.

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mark cavendish tour de france siege

  • As it happened - Pogacar edged out by Schultz on stage 1 of Volta a Catalunya

'I always think about the Tour de France' – Mark Cavendish plots new route to familiar goal

Manxman gets 2024 campaign underway in Colombia after first long stint at altitude

Mark Cavendish and Michael Morkov at the Tour Colombia team presentation

The destination is the same as ever it was for Mark Cavendish , but there's no harm in opting for a different route now and then. Cycling keeps changing, after all. For the results in July to stay the same, a degree of adaptation has been necessary over the years.

With that in mind, Cavendish has opted for a novel prelude to this, his 19th season in the WorldTour. He has already spent the past three weeks in Colombia undertaking the most extended stint of altitude training of his entire career, and on Tuesday, he begins his campaign some 2,500m above sea level at the Tour Colombia.

Cavendish and an Astana Qazaqstan contingent that includes Michael Mørkøv, Cees Bol and his coach Vasilis Anastopoulos arrived in Colombia on January 15. After a week or so in Rionegro, training with a police escort to navigate the heavy traffic in the hinterland of Medellín, they moved to higher ground in Boyacá, the site of the Tour Colombia's opening three stages.

"I can't believe it after so many years, but it's my first time in Colombia. I want to stay," Cavendish said at the pre-race press conference on the shores of Lake Sochacota on Monday. "We spent a week in Medellin, which was incredible, and then we came up here to Paipa. The only problem was I couldn't breathe for two weeks. But now I understand why the riders from Colombia just play with us when they come down to sea level."

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Cavendish explained that he had no real frame of reference for gauging how well he had adapted to the rarefied air during his time in Colombia. "It's hard to compare when it comes to adaptation because I've never really done altitude before," he said. The opening stage to Duitama should offer some indication. Although the town's name is forever redolent of that most arduous 1995 World Championships course, the route on Tuesday lends itself to a bunch finish.

The expectation is that Cavendish will vie with Fernando Gaviria (Movistar) for victory, but the Manxman knows only too well that racing in South America against a motivated peloton of Continental riders can produce surprises. A teenaged Gaviria, after all, announced himself to the world by beating Cavendish at Villa Mercedes on the opening day of the Tour de San Luis back in 2015.

"With regards to the sprints, I don't know," Cavendish said. "We've got a very strong team, and I know Fernando has a strong team with Movistar too. But like we've seen with the road championships in Colombia, there are a lot of domestically based riders who can spring a surprise. We'll just enjoy it and see how it goes."

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Gaviria, for his part, nodded to Cavendish – "el compañero," he smiled – as his main obstacle on Tuesday, and the renewal of their friendly rivalry is one of the intriguing subplots to this race. When Gaviria signed for QuickStep in mid-2015 to offset Cavendish's imminent departure, few could have anticipated that they would still be clashing almost a decade later as the older man closed in on his 39th birthday.

"I don't know. Just adapt, I guess," Cavendish said when asked how he had managed to retain his finishing speed so deep into his career. "I'm very fortunate to have had a career that spans many generations of riders and I got to race against the champions of all of those generations.

"From doing that, I managed to learn a lot and learn how to race and adapt to how cycling changes. And I just love it. When you love it so much, you just ride your bike. That's it."

The race Cavendish loves above others, of course, is still five months away. His crash at last year's Tour de France , not to mention his frustrating near miss the previous day in Bordeaux, ultimately persuaded him to postpone his retirement . He realised he still had unfinished business, and his presence here in Colombia is a means to that end.

"Of course, I always think about the Tour de France," Cavendish said. "I've always thought about the Tour de France in my whole career. But that doesn't mean you take the rest of the races easy, you know.

"As a sprinter, especially, you're marked on your wins. Second, third, fourth or fifth doesn't matter, you're rated by your wins, so it's always important to win throughout. And both on a physical and mental point, the motivation you get from victories early in the year can carry you through to July."

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Barry Ryan

Barry Ryan is Head of Features at Cyclingnews. He has covered professional cycling since 2010, reporting from the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and events from Argentina to Japan. His writing has appeared in The Independent, Procycling and Cycling Plus. He is the author of The Ascent: Sean Kelly, Stephen Roche and the Rise of Irish Cycling’s Golden Generation , published by Gill Books.

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  8. Mark Cavendish Crashes Out of the Tour

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  15. Ace sprinter Mark Cavendish delays retirement to chase outright record

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  16. Mark Cavendish 'devastated' as 35th Tour de France stage win slips

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