“Cav is without doubt the sport’s greatest sprinter" - Tributes pour in as Mark Cavendish announces retirement

'The Manx Missile' Mark Cavendish has announced that 2023 will be his final year in the World Tour peloton. 34 Tour de France stage wins, the 2011 World Championship, 16 Giro d'Italia stage wins and much more, understandably the tributes have been pouring in.

Performance Director of British Cycling, Stephen Park CBE was one of the first to give a glowing recollection of Cavendish's time in the peloton. “On behalf of British Cycling, I would like to congratulate Mark on a truly outstanding career," he told the official website of British Cycling. "Cav is without doubt the sport’s greatest sprinter and will be remembered by fans across the world for his 53 grand tour stage wins, and I’m sure that we will all be cheering him on as he looks to add to that total in his final months of racing."

Alongside his many successes on the bike, Cavendish must also be remembered for his impact in changing the peloton and as such the sport as a whole. At the forefront of the modern influx of British stars into the World Tour like we see now, Cavendish's victories brought road cycling to a wider audience than it had perhaps ever had before on the British Isles.

“From a Great Britain Cycling Team perspective, we have seen him win rainbow jerseys on both the road and the track, a silver medal at the Rio Olympic Games, and the BBC Sports Personality of the Year title in 2011," explains Stephen Park. “What most stands out in Cav as a sportsperson is the overwhelming sense of pride he showed each time he pulled on both the Great Britain Cycling Team and British national champion’s jerseys – a quality we want to instil in every single member of our team."

“Professional and passionate, Cav has been a real asset to our team over the years and will be remembered as both a peerless rider and a fantastic teammate with time for everyone," he continues. "We wish him the very best of luck both for the rest of his final season in the peloton and in the next stage of his career.”