Mark Cavendish - At Speed

Contents

I was 25, rich, successful and a complete mess. I wasnt steady personally, I wasnt steady professionally. I only managed to stay disciplined because cyclings my life. Cyclings what gets me through. And winning. Without it, Id be a mess all the time.

Mark Cavendish is the first British cyclist to win the Tour de Frances green jersey, the first to wear the iconic rainbow jersey in almost 50 years and our only ever rider to capture the Giro dItalia points title. He is the most prolific sprinter in the Tours history and according to Lquipe the best sprinter of all time. But smashing records and racking up victories means whole new levels of fame: and this has come at a price.

Living in the goldfish bowl, he has come under fire for his bombastic riding style and been portrayed as everything from an outlaw to a psychopath. Riding for Team Sky at the 2012 Tour, Cav soon found his own sprint interests to be incompatible with the teams other goals, while the expectations of a nation made his London Olympic failure hard to take.

In At Speed Cav takes you through the highs and lows of it all in intimate detail. This is a take-no-prisoners account of life at the pinnacle of his sport and learning how to survive in the fast lane both on and off the bike.

Born and raised on the Isle of Man, Mark Cavendish MBE was a world track champion as a teenager. He then switched his focus to road cycling and is widely regarded as the greatest sprinter to grace the sport. He was Road World Champion in 2011 and is one of only five riders to have won the points jersey in the Tour, Giro and Vuelta. Cav still lives on the Isle of Man with his wife Peta and daughter Delilah.

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Published in 2013 by Ebury Press, an imprint of Ebury Publishing
A Random House Group company

Copyright Mark Cavendish 2013

Mark Cavendish has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this Work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

All photographs courtesy of Getty Images, with the exception of authors own picture of his family

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ISBN 9780091933401 (HB)
ISBN 9780091957629 (TPB)

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For Delilah

My infamous two-fingered salute after winning stage two of the Tour of Romandy in 2010. Not my smartest move, but Id spent the start of the season ill in bed, the critics were all over me and it was an emotional response in the heat of the moment.

Blood, sweat and tears.
Carrying the scars of a particularly tasty crash during the final run-in on stage two of the Tour Down Under in 2011.

After a pressured and difficult start to the 2010 Tour de France, returning to winning ways with the fifth stage was undoubtedly one of my most emotional victories.

It doesnt always go to plan.
A crash during a packed final sprint on stage three of the Tour of Switzerland saw me fined and docked points.

I lost out on stage two of the Giro in 2011 by the width of a wheel rim when I felt Petacchi rode across my line. The jury saw differently, but I had the consolation of wearing the maglia rosa the following day.

Its all part of the circus leading out the HTC-Highroad team in the Puy du Fou at the official team presentation of the 2011 Tour de France.

Celebrating winning my fifth stage of the 2010 Tour. Despite this success I narrowly lost out to Petacchi for the green jersey.

Everythings gone green I got my first grand tour points jersey in Madrid in the Vuelta, 2010.

Celebrating on the finish line on the Champs-Elyses to finally take the maillot vert in 2011. Theres no more dramatic place on Earth to win.

The high point of my career as I emotionally receive my world champion medal and jersey after the Elite Mens Road Race in Copenhagen, 2011.

I look ecstatic and was up to a point: the elation was also tinged with guilt, as I pulled on the rainbow jersey without the lads whose selfless performances had won me the World Road Race.

I hug Geraint Thomas moments after crossing the line.

The fame game. Once you reach a certain level it becomes as intense off the bike as on it.
Here I am promoting British technology with David Cameron in Woking in 2011.