The Astana-Qazaqstan sprinter won on just his fourth race day in 2024. Will it be a good sign, asks Adam Becket
Mark Cavendish was left “speechless” last Friday after a perfect leadout led to his first win of 2024, his final season.
The Astana-Qazaqstan sprinter triumphed on stage four of the Tour of Colombia. It came after he had finished third on the opening stage of the race, but possibly more interestingly, after he had spent three weeks at altitude in South America.
Cavendish, who is competing in Colombia for the first time, was given the perfect slingshot to the line by his Astana team-mates, with three of them marshaling him inside the final kilometre. As he came off the wheel of Cees Bol with just over 100m of road remaining, Cavendish charged through the middle and crossed the line just as Gaviria was coming up on the left of him.
“It’s nice to pull it off when the team had to work like we did today, and we made a really perfect leadout, we had five riders in the last kilometre,” the 38-year-old said post-race. “When you have that, it will be hard to lose.”
“I’m speechless. I was lined up behind my boys in the final kilometre and knew I couldn’t let them down,” he continued. “They were phenomenal. Not just in the final, but the whole day.”
“After a split in the peloton over a climb, they chased with ferocity and heart, along with Movistar, for 70km to make sure we got our sprint. The belief and passion they showed for our team brings tears to my eyes.”
It is the earliest that the Manx Missile has won a race since 2018 when he won stage three of the Dubai Tour, and it will elevate his confidence in his final season.
The victory was his 163rd in his career, meaning he has moved up to joint-second in the all-time win rankings of
