Biniam Girmay: "I'm one of the kids inspired from Cavendish"

Biniam Girmay is among the best sprinters in the current peloton and has definitely left a mark at the Tour de France this year, winning three stages and arriving in Nice with the green jersey. At the Saitama Criterium they were two of the stars present and the Eritrean was asked about Mark Cavendish's influence on his career.

“I'm one of the kids inspired from Cavendish to be honest. I remember when I started watching cycling he was winning his first stage in the Tour when he was with HTC Columbia, it blew my mind," Girmay said in an interview with Cyclingnews. In the exhibition 'race' taking place in Japan, Girmay was the first over the finish line, in front of his childhood idol.

Cavendish was the great sprinter of the late 2000's and early 2010's, but his career has seen several revivals and through a very complex set of transfers and dramatic situations, ultimately with the Astana Qazaqstan Team this year he managed to break the record that he had been seeking for so many years already. Safe to say that Cavendish was a idol to many young cyclists at the time and Girmay was one of them.

"I was like ‘fuck, I want to be like this guy in the future’. For me, it's a big honour to race with Cavendish, I always say to him also". Whether the two will continue in the same peloton next season will largely depend on Cavendish's choice over the coming motnhs.