Refreshed Cavendish eyes London
BRITAIN’S Mark Cavendish will return to the saddle this weekend in the Tour of Britain with his eyes fixed on glory in London.
The Tour de France green jersey winner has not raced since retiring from the Vuelta a Espana just four stages into the competition.
But two weeks later, Cavendish says he feels fresh and eager to start the Tour of Britain, which begins in Scotland and climaxes in London next week.
He wrote on Twitter: “Last block of training done. Now to freshen up for ToB [Tour of Britain]. After the course severity and crashes, maybe leaving Vuelta early was a blessing.”
The race gets underway on Sunday in Peebles and finishes seven days later in central London, where the almost 100-strong field will compete in a time trial followed by a circuit.
Cavendish will be part of a HTC-Highroad team looking for their third successive Tour of Britain title.
“Mark’s addition will ensure that the sprints are hotly contested,” said race director Mick Bennett. “As a team we have worked hard over the past fortnight to ensure that Mark rides the Tour of Britain.”