Mark Cavendish dropped early in Stage 1
The Astana rider surrounded by teammates as he struggled to finish in time limit
Mark Cavendish is struggling with stomach and heat issues during the Tour de France‘s opening stage, jeopardizing his pursuit of breaking Eddy Merckx’s record for most career stage wins. Cavendish vomited twice, once near the top of the first climb and again on the descent, falling behind on the Col de Valico Tre Faggi. Four Astana teammates dropped back to assist him.
A tough first day of racing
The 206-kilometre route from Florence to Rimini featured seven categorized climbs and intense heat, reaching 36°C. Cavendish, who matched Merckx’s 34 stage wins in 2021, delayed retirement to attempt breaking the record.
In the summer of 2023, Cavendish narrowly missed the chance to surpass Merckx’s stage win record. However, a crash dashed his hopes in what was believed to be his final Tour.
He was 21 minutes behind the leaders with 8 km remaining to race.
Mark Cavendish is in big difficulty on the Tour de France opening stage’s first of seven climbs #TDF2024 pic.twitter.com/XchyUVKtOu
— Canadian Cycling Mag (@CanadianCycling) June 29, 2024
Eyes on 35: where could Cav win?
Having already clinched two wins this season and ridden crucial race miles at the Tour de Suisse in June, Cavendish’s first opportunity to surpass Merckx could arise on Stage 3, from Piacenza to Turin, a few days after the 2024 Grand Départ in Florence. Additionally, Stages 5, 6, and 8 present further chances for bunch sprints. He just has to survive Stage 1 and 2.
Cavendish has a strong sprint support team within the Kazakh squad, led by his long-time lead-out man Michael Mørkøv. Joining Mørkøv are Dutchman Cees Bol and Italian Davide Ballerini, ensuring Cavendish is well-positioned for the anticipated sprint finishes.
Cavendish boasts a remarkable 164 professional victories, including the 34 stage wins in the Tour de France. He has been world champion, British champion and has won the green jersey, among his many palmarès.
His Astana Qazaqstan teammate Michele Gazzoli has already abandoned due to the heat.
