Cavendish Seals First Stage Victory of Tour de France 2012
July 3rd, 2012
British cyclist, Mark Cavendish won his first stage of the 2012 Tour de France yesterday, making it the 21st of his career.
The 27-year-old, originally from the Isle of Man, proved his skill with the bike over the 207km route, beating Andre Gripel and Matt Goss to the finish line.
British cyclist, Mark Cavendish won his first stage of the 2012 Tour de France yesterday, making it the 21st of his career.
The 27-year-old, originally Isle of Man, proved his skill with the bike over the 207km route, beating Andre Gripel and Matt Goss to the finish line.
The dramatic sprint finish started 54.5km from the finish, with Cavendish in the breakaway pack on his own with no support from his team mates.
The Brit ‘pipped’ Gripel just a few meters from the finishing line to claim first place.
“Normally I win by some bike lengths. Today I had to lunge at the line, so you see that it wasn’t too easy,” said Cavendish.
“It was always going to be difficult to win stages – if anything it made me kind of more relaxed.
“In the past, I’ve always had a dedicated team to sprint with, so there was always that pressure to win”
The victory has landed Cavendish the honour of appearing sixth on the list of all-time Tour de France stage winners.
However with the Olympic games just a few weeks away it is expected that the green jersey will be on the back of another rider when they roll in to Paris on July 22nd.