Mark Cavendish (UK, Astana Kazakhstan), who will be participating in the Singapore Criterium held today, has announced his retirement, which he had avoided making clear until now. “I’m ready to take the next step,” he said, bidding farewell to his 18 years of professional life.
Mark Cavendish came to Japan for Saitama Criterium photo:Makoto AYANO
“Sunday will be my last race as a professional cyclist. I feel lucky to have been involved in the sport I love for almost 20 years, and am proud to have achieved so much. Cycling has always been my passion. I’ve given so much and worked so hard to be unique, and now I’m ready to step into the next chapter of my life. I want to thank everyone for their continued support.” DISH (UK, Astana Kazakhstan) ownsSNSPosted on.
Cavendish, who turned 39 in May of this year, announced his retirement from active racing in May 2023, on a day off from the Giro d’Italia, during which he was competing. He won on the final day in Rome and competed in his last Tour de France. However, Cavendish crashed on stage eight and retired with a broken collarbone.
Mark Cavendish (Astana Kazakhstan, Great Britain) broke the record for most section wins in this year’s Tour photo: CorVos
Three months later, in October 2023, Cavendish announced that he would continue as an active player. The team also acquired lead-out Mikel Morkov (Denmark) and manager Mark Renshaw. He was fully prepared for the 5th stage of this year’s Tour de France, and with his skillful line-taking, he won his 35th victory, a solo record for the most stage wins.
After the Tour, Cavendish participated in various events and the Saitama Criterium. Although it had been decided that he would leave Astana Kazakhstan, there were rumors that he would continue as an active player as he had avoided making any clear statement about his retirement.
Mark Cavendish (Astana Kazakhstan, UK) attending the press conference after Saitama Critte photo: Satoru Kato
He has played for a number of teams, including T-Mobile, which he joined in 2007, Sky Pro Cycling, Etics Quickstep, and Dimension Data, and has amassed 165 wins to date. In the UCI race, the final stage of the Tour de France on July 21st was his last race as an active rider, but today’s Tour de France Singapore Criterium, in which Yukiya Shinshiro (Bahrain Victorious) will also be participating, will be the last stage of the Tour de France on July 21st. This will be Dish’s final professional race.
text:Sotaro.Arakawa
photo: Yuichiro Hosoda
