Mark Cavendish became the first British male rider to win the road race world title in 46 years when he edged the field in a mass sprint on Sunday.
At the end of a 260km ride from Copenhagen, Manxman Cavendish beat Australia’s Matthew Goss, with German Andre Greipel coming home third.
“There couldn’t be another result after the way the guys rode today. I’m so so proud,” Cavendish, the first Briton to win the title since the late Tom Simpson in 1965, told Eurosport. “Hopefully, we can make the double with this title and the Olympics next year.”
Photo: Reuters
Cavendish, who already has 20 Tour de France stage wins to his name, benefited all day from tremendous work by his British teammates, who controlled the field, working tirelessly in front of the peloton.
The 26-year-old “Manx Missile” was sheltered and nurtured by Bradley Wiggins, David Millar, Geraint Thomas, Jeremy Hunt, Ian Stannard, Steve Cummings and Chris Froome.
Tour de France green jersey winner Cavendish, widely rumored to be joining Team Sky next season, sneaked through in the slightly uphill final straight and then left no room for doubt.
He succeeds Norway’s Thor Hushovd, who lost any chance of retaining his title when he was held up by a massive crash with 85km to go.
“It’s incredible. It’s been a three-year project. When the course was announced, we saw it as the best opportunity ... to bring the rainbow jersey back to Great Britain,” Cavendish told a press conference.
To achieve this, Britain needed more than the three riders they had managed to qualify last year and the country’s recent results gave Britain the right to field an eight-man team in Denmark.
“It’s not just the eight guys here today, but all 13, 14 professional riders of Great Britain who worked all year to secure points,” Cavendish said.
The race got off to a nervous start, with France and Spain putting a rider each in the breakaway as about 250,000 cycling fans turned out along the course, according to the organizers.
Anthony Roux and Pablo Lastras, along with four others, built an eight-minute gap that Britain and Germany, hoping for a massive sprint, controlled from the front of the peloton.
With 108km to go, five riders, including France’s Yoann Offredo, Paris-Roubaix winner Johan van Summeren of Belgium and Luca Paolini of Italy, launched a counterattack, forcing the sprinters’ teams to work hard in front of the peloton.
The crash 85km out cost Hushovd and about 90 other riders about a minute.
With 70km left the early escapees were caught, but the breakaway still had a one-minute lead over the peloton and at that point the British riders stepped up the pace.
Roux tried his luck solo with 34km left, but the peloton caught the remains of the breakaway with 23km to go and soon picked off Roux, but they could not rest long as Frenchman Thomas Voeckler, Belgian Klaas Lodewyck and local favorite Nicki Sorensen sped away.
The peloton regrouped 7km from the line, as Britain and Australia prepared for the most eagerly awaited sprint of the season.
Swiss powerhouse Fabian Cancellara gave it a shot, but he could only manage fourth. Goss got to Cavendish’s wheel, but had to settle for second.
“My teammates looked after me all day, they rode like a seasoned professional team,” Goss told reporters. “I don’t like being the bridesmaid, I would much rather be wearing that jersey today.”
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