LONDON — Britain’s Mark Cavendish claimed his final professional race, at the two-day Tour de France Criterium in Singapore, bringing down the curtain on his glittering 19-year career with a sprint finish.
Cavendish’s fellow competitors gave him a guard of honour ahead of the race and the Manxman was understandably emotional at the end.
“I´m quite emotional,” Cavendish said according to Reuters. “I realised in the last five laps it was the last 15 kilometres of my career.
“I was nervous about crashing or something if I fight (for the lead). I really wanted that so bad. I’ve always loved this sport.
“I’m really looking forward to what the rest of my career holds, just not on a bike, and I’m looking forward to seeing everybody soon.”
Speaking to Eurosport through tears the 39-year-old said: “I didn’t race since the Tour de France so I missed that sharpness and, when the guys are here with the lead-out teams, it was always going to be difficult, but you see the amazing job that my team, Astana Kazakhstan, did leading me out, I had to go.
“I had to let Jasper (Philipsen) and Biniam (Girmay) in in the final lap, I was nervous about crashing or something if I fight. I really wanted to finish at least my last race.
“I could feel the lead coming, and when I passed Jasper I could feel him speed up, but I really wanted that so bad. I’m so proud to win the Tour de France Prudential Criterium as my last professional race.”
In the summer, Cavendish took his 35th stage win in the Tour de France to break the record he had held jointly with Eddy Merckx.
He also won 20 stages across the Vuelta a Espana and the Giro d’Italia, winning the points classification twice at the Tour de France and once each in the other two grand tours.
His success extended to the track, where he won an Olympic silver medal in the omnium in Rio in 2016, while he was a three-time world champion in the Madison and a Commonwealth champion for the Isle of Man in the scratch race.
What retirement holds remains to be seen, although it seems Cavendish is not planning to stay away from cycling for long.
“I love this sport, I’ve always loved this sport, especially the Tour de France,” he said.
“The Tour de France isn’t just a bike race; it’s the biggest annual sporting event in the world. It’s what children dream of, it’s what adults dream of, it’s what you pretend to do when you’re out training.
“Cycling’s such a form of freedom, it’s a way to meet people, it’s a way to be alone with your thoughts, it’s a way to be however you want to be.
“It has so much potential as a sport, as a mode of transport, as a pastime, and I truly believe this and I’ve always believed this and I try and do anything I can to help this move forward.
“That won’t stop, even if I’m not riding a bike any more. In fact I might be able to put more into that now. I’m really looking forward to what the rest of my career holds, just not on the bike.
“I couldn’t have wished for a better send-off than here. To have my wife and my friends here is brilliant. I’m so emotional, I’m so grateful and I hope everyone enjoyed that.”
Cavendish won 165 races in his career, including the road world title in 2011, 17 stages in the Giro d’Italia and three in the Vuelta a Espana. He received a knighthood in October.
On the track, he won omnium silver at the 2016 Olympics and was a three-time Madison world champion.
Having delayed his retirement by a year, Cavendish broke the record for most Tour de France stage wins with a victory in Saint Vulbas in July.
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