On the occasion of the second day of rest at the Giro, British sprinter Mark Cavendish (38) confirmed that he would retire at the end of this season.
The day after his 38th birthday, Mark Cavendish took advantage of the second day of rest on the Giro to make an announcement. An announcement that did not surprise many people, but at least things are now official: the 2023 season will be the last for the British sprinter. “I absolutely loved riding every kilometer of this race so far, so I think it’s the perfect time to say this is my last Giro d’Italia and 2023 will be my last season as a cyclist. professional. Cycling has been my life for over 25 years. I lived an absolute dream. Cycling has given me the opportunity to see the world and meet amazing people, many of whom I’m proud to call friends. I love the sport more than you can even imagine and I can’t see myself straying too far from it, that’s for sure. When you understand that it doesn’t last forever, it’s easier to enjoy all the thrills this sport has to offer. Today is my son Casper’s fifth birthday, luckily it’s a day off and I can spend his birthday with him. I think it’s important now that I can be there for every birthday of my wife Peta and all of our children (they have four together, editor’s note). It’s important that I can see all the concerts at their school and support them in their sports competitions and it’s important that I can run with them without worrying about getting hurt or getting sick. »
Record goal on the Tour de France
At the end of this season, Mark Cavendish will close a huge chapter in his life, made up of 17 years of professionalism. After starting out in 2007 at T-Mobile, the Isle of Man man joined High Road, now Columbia, the following season, and stayed there for six seasons. He then answered the call of his country’s major formation, Sky, but only spent a year there, in 2012. It was then Quick Step that welcomed him, between 2013 and 2015, before to join Dimension Data (2016-2019) then Bahrain McLaren (2020) and to return to Quick Step (2021-22). This year, after being without a team for a long time, he finally signed up with Astana Qazakhstan in mid-January, which will therefore be the last team of his career. Mark Cavendish has 161 victories to his name, including a world champion title (in 2011), a Milan – San Remo (in 2009) and of course 53 Grand Tours stages, including 34 in the Tour de France. Co-holder of the record for victories on the Grande Boucle with Eddy Merckx, he will have one Tour left to try to be alone at the top of the hierarchy. And end his immense career in the most beautiful way.
