Mark Cavendish to participate in Tour of Britain 2011 after withdrawing from Vuelta a Espana
After his withdrawal from the Vuelta a Espana 2011, Mark Cavendish’s inclusion in the Tour of Britain was doubtful but it has now been reported by a British newspaper that the HTC-Highroad cyclist will be taking part in the eight day tour starting from September
11.
Cavendish who has withdrawn from the Vuelta a Espana during stage 4 and it appears as if the Manx professional cyclist was unable to bear the Spanish heat and was too tired to continue the tour. Cavendish was riding at the Vuelta as the preparation for World
Championships and now will be looking ahead at the Tour of Britain for the Championship preparation.
The cyclist was required to take permission from UCI to participate in the Tour of Britain because of rule 2.6.026 that states, “A rider dropping out of the race may not compete in any other cycling events for the duration of the stage race that he abandoned,
on pain (sic) of a 15 day suspension and a fine of CHF 200 to 1,000.” It further states that the events directors collectively are authorised to grant permissions on the cyclist’s request if agreed by the team manager.
Edvald Boasson Hagen and Michael Albasini have won the tour of Britain for team HTC Highroad but it will be the first time for Cavendish to participate in his home tour since 2007.
Race director Mick Bennett was overwhelmed with the inclusion of the Manx rider as he mentioned that Mark’s appearance in the team will be of great help for the organisers as he has already shown some brilliant performances in the 2005 and 2006 Tour including
an overall win in 2007.
Tour of Britain is starting from Scotland and will conclude in London on September 18 just one week before the World Championships and will be the only chance for the cyclists to prepare for the mega event.
Cavendish’s addition in the Tour will attract a huge amount of fans as he is a local hero and organisers are relieved that UCI has allowed the 26-year-old to participate in the event. Other cyclists to represent the team HTC-Highroad in the Tour of Britain
2011 are Matt Brammeier, Lars Bak, Bernhard Eisel, Mark Renshaw and Alex Rasmussen.
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