Official! Mark Cavendish postpones retirement: "Just one more year hey!"

It is now official! After months of speculation, Mark Cavendish has signed a year-long extension with the Astana Qazaqstan Team, prolonging his retirement.

"Hi everyone, well I guess that was me done this year. I announced my retirement, I was looking forward to not having to get up and train in every weather condition," Cavendish himself announced in a post on Astana's X (Twitter) account. "Not be away from home, spend time with the kids and ultimately I'd miss racing. I love racing but I was in a happy place and I knew I could go out on top."

"Obviously it wasn't the finish I'd hoped for, crashing out of the Tour de France but it is what it is. We grew incredibly as a team; Astana Qazaqstan this year and it felt like a real family," he continues. "So much so that the first thing Vino said to me when I crashed out in France was; 'Why are you not doing another year?'"

"The more I've ridden this summer, I just love riding a bike," he concludes. "I spoke to the kids and I said; 'what should dad do?' and they said 'carry on!' So here we are, just one more year hey!"