Chapeau to Cavendish - has ridden all year on the track and the road - 71 days on the road and more on the track.
- Nov 16, 2013
- 26,686
- 27,791
- 28,180
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/mark-cavendish-diagnosed-with-epstein-barr-virus/
Sad for him. This could probably mean no Tour given how long this disease usually lasts. Let's hope it doesn't hit him as harshly as it did Beñat Intxausti.
Sad for him. This could probably mean no Tour given how long this disease usually lasts. Let's hope it doesn't hit him as harshly as it did Beñat Intxausti.
- Apr 19, 2014
- 2,519
- 231
- 11,880
Damn, that's a shame. Now there is almost no competition for Kittel at the Tour. Flat stages where boring enough as it is but now it's obvious, who takes those stages. Last year was the first in a long while that he actually challenged Kittel and even won more stages than him and now this.
Re:
It's not uncommon in endurance athletes. Michael Rodgers also had a few seasons badly effected by it.
tobydawq said:
It's not uncommon in endurance athletes. Michael Rodgers also had a few seasons badly effected by it.
- Feb 23, 2014
- 8,827
- 254
- 17,880
Bummer....I really was looking forward to him winning in the Tour. He made last years sprints so interesting. I was enjoying the weaker leadout trains - little bit more chaotic than the last few years...in a good way. I guess it will be harder for him to reach Merckx's record.
Yeah, this is disappointing. As mentioned earlier on, sprint stages are bad enough, but if they are victory processions for Kittel, they will be really boring.
- Aug 13, 2011
- 7,887
- 12,057
- 23,180
NOOOOOOOOO!
I hope he recovers in time for Le Tour especially since him and Armstrong is what got me into cycling in 2009. Hopefully this doesn't beat his chances to pass Merckx.
If he can't ride it I hope he goes to Vuelta and adds to his tally there and get closer to 10 wins and hopefully win the points classification.
I hope he recovers in time for Le Tour especially since him and Armstrong is what got me into cycling in 2009. Hopefully this doesn't beat his chances to pass Merckx.
If he can't ride it I hope he goes to Vuelta and adds to his tally there and get closer to 10 wins and hopefully win the points classification.
Cavendish had a long and tough season in 2016 - mixing road and track and was still riding 6 day races at the end of November - 2017 was always going to be a slow burn.
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Yep..and there is no telling how long it will be before he is recovered as people react differently. For some it is mild, but the fatigue can persist, for others it can put them in bed for a fortnight and the effects can hamper them for over a year.
My gut feeling is that he won't be competitive come July, which is a shame as he has developed into a skilled stage poacher, rather than a straight up sheer speed merchant at the end of a train.
There will still be plenty of fun in the sprints without him, but I hope he can add to it.
movingtarget said:
Yep..and there is no telling how long it will be before he is recovered as people react differently. For some it is mild, but the fatigue can persist, for others it can put them in bed for a fortnight and the effects can hamper them for over a year.
My gut feeling is that he won't be competitive come July, which is a shame as he has developed into a skilled stage poacher, rather than a straight up sheer speed merchant at the end of a train.
There will still be plenty of fun in the sprints without him, but I hope he can add to it.
I wonder if his added travel to support the team bike project, Qhubeka, contributed to his fatigue and hammered immune system? Huge 2016+extra travel=E-BV? I'm always amazed that these guys aren't sick more often than they are (or maybe we don't hear about most of it) since they are racing, training, and traveling all over the globe.
- Aug 13, 2011
- 7,887
- 12,057
- 23,180
- Jul 12, 2012
- 8,975
- 591
- 19,080
Good to see him back racing, hopefully he can win another Tour stage but its hard to see him getting into the same form as last July after his health problems. I suppose there is no guarantee he will even make the Tour if he suffers during his return.
- Aug 13, 2011
- 7,887
- 12,057
- 23,180
I hope he gets well enough to do the Tour. Without him the sprint stages would be boring for me and I would be stock just rooting for Contador to win and Valverde to do well.
I wish he would give the Vuelta a try more then just 10 and 11. I think that would be a big achievement being the 1st and possibly only person with at least 10 wins in each GT.
I wish he would give the Vuelta a try more then just 10 and 11. I think that would be a big achievement being the 1st and possibly only person with at least 10 wins in each GT.
Think Cavendish should ease into riding and aim for the Vuelta, though this will make the second tier sprinter's unhappy.
- May 9, 2014
- 5,230
- 108
- 17,680
Re:
No way, there's way too many sprint opportunities this year to completely give the Tour a miss. Take the start line, see how he goes, and then maybe pull out before the mountains before giving the Vuelta a go
yaco said:
No way, there's way too many sprint opportunities this year to completely give the Tour a miss. Take the start line, see how he goes, and then maybe pull out before the mountains before giving the Vuelta a go
- Nov 7, 2010
- 8,820
- 246
- 17,880
There's only about 2 stages in the Vuelta that Cav has a decent chance of winning, and one more where he has an outside chance. Would be crazy to target that. Even if he's got no form at all he could ride himself into shape at the start of the Tour and have at least three good chances in the last week. It's not like there is huge competition for places at DD either.
- May 9, 2014
- 5,230
- 108
- 17,680
Re:
The only thing is bringing Cav means bringing a bunch of leadout men who have no chance of winning any stages. But yeah, this is DD we're talking about, not Etixx, and an off-form Cav probs still has far higher chances of winning a stage than 5 other DD riders combined
DFA123 said:
The only thing is bringing Cav means bringing a bunch of leadout men who have no chance of winning any stages. But yeah, this is DD we're talking about, not Etixx, and an off-form Cav probs still has far higher chances of winning a stage than 5 other DD riders combined
- Nov 7, 2010
- 8,820
- 246
- 17,880
Re: Re:
Definitely. He basically saved their season last year, so they can repay him a bit.. Well, him and the UCI changing the WT 'relegation' system. If they think he's a big risk, then they could even just give him one leadout man and tell him to fight for himself. Still would have a way better chance of a stage win in that situation than anyone else they could potentially replace him with.PremierAndrew said:
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No point in going to the TDF unless you are close to 100% - Go to the Vuelta and that gives you a base for 2018 - Yo gotta think long-term and not only short-term.
DFA123 said:
No point in going to the TDF unless you are close to 100% - Go to the Vuelta and that gives you a base for 2018 - Yo gotta think long-term and not only short-term.
- Jan 3, 2012
- 1,953
- 1
- 10,485
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Assuming he's in anything close to good shape, he should 100% go to the Tour. A stage in the Tour is easily worth 5 in the Vuelta. No-one cares about Vuelta sprint stages and for good reason - there basically are no sprint stages and (therefore) basically no sprinters!
The Vuelta means nothing to Cav - he's already won stages there and the points jersey. With him so close to Merckx and every stage win getting closer to the last in his career, unless he really isn't feeling it he must go to the Tour.
yaco said:
Assuming he's in anything close to good shape, he should 100% go to the Tour. A stage in the Tour is easily worth 5 in the Vuelta. No-one cares about Vuelta sprint stages and for good reason - there basically are no sprint stages and (therefore) basically no sprinters!
The Vuelta means nothing to Cav - he's already won stages there and the points jersey. With him so close to Merckx and every stage win getting closer to the last in his career, unless he really isn't feeling it he must go to the Tour.
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