today 10:54
|
When Deceuninck-QuickStep boss Patrick Lefevere and aging British sprinter Mark Cavendish agreed on an annual minimum wage contract last October, the cycling world saw it as a sentimental reminder of times of glory.
In the last four years, the Isle of Man express has won only two victories and could only dream of starting the Tour de France. But dreams sometimes come true even in advanced sports.
Things have moved forward and evolved despite poor expectations. Thirty-six-year-old Cavendish has scored nine victories since the start of the 2021 season, four of them at the “Old Lady”, where he equaled the historic record of 34 stage triumphs played by Eddy Merckx as a substitute for Sam Bennett. And he has two more opportunities to overcome it.
While his boss Lefevere sees Cavendish’s eventual triumph in the final stage of Paris as the peak and end of his career, the cyclist himself thinks otherwise. After years of stagnation and health problems, he enjoyed the competition at the highest level and does not want to give it up so easily.
“I realize I can’t ride a bike forever and win. But I still love it and I’m happy to be able to do it. I’d like to continue as long as my body allows it.” said Mark Cavendish on Cyclingnews.com. The low Brit is known for his emotions and high rate of survival.
He does not want to talk about it out loud at the record-thirty-fifth at the Tour de France. “When the chance arises, I always want to fight for a sprint victory. It’s the same as thirteen years ago when I won the stage for the first time on the Tour. There’s no sentiment in it, I just want to keep winning and I don’t think it has be a record number, ” noted the holder of the gold and silver medals from the World Championships on the road and three gold medals from the World Championships on the track.
A bonus to the winning stages for Cavendish is the leading position in the competition for the green jersey, which belonged to Peter Sagan at TdF for years. Currently, the Slovak universal is out of the game after knee surgery, and the British fast can experience a second triumph in the scoring after ten years. However, he has to manage the dreaded Pyrenean double duel with the Col du Portet or the legendary Tourmalet, when both stages will end at the top of the climb.
And then he has to add a portion of points in the already mentioned sprint stages, as the Australian Michael Matthews has already approached him by a difference of 37 points. “I’m nervous about pushing the limit every day, but that’s part of it, and I have to get over it somehow. I don’t want to overtake how it will all turn out, but I believe I’m having the hardest time in the hills.” declared Cavendish.
