L'information révélée par le journal La Gazzetta dello Sport s'est confirmée. Mark Cavendish a profité de la deuxième journée de repos du Tour d'Italie, soit ce lundi, pour annoncer qu'il prendra sa retraite à l'issue de la saison 2023. Celui qui a fêté ses 38 ans dimanche 21 mai et est considéré par certains comme le meilleur sprinteur de l'histoire du cyclisme effectue actuellement, au sein de l'équipe Astana Qazaqstan Team, sa dix-septième saison chez les professionnels. Auteur de deux tops 5 sur le 106e Giro (3e à Tortona et 4e à Salerno), l'homme aux 161 victoires en carrière se lancera un dernier défi dans quelques semaines à l'occasion du Tour de France, à savoir remporter une 35e étape afin de mettre Eddy Merckx dans son rétroviseur et ainsi devenir le seul recordman de succès sur la Grande Boucle.
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SportTranscription
00:00 Though the tough conditions,
00:01 I've absolutely loved racing every kilometer so far.
00:05 So I feel it's a perfect opportunity to say
00:08 with absolute joy in my heart
00:11 that this will be my final Giro d'Italia
00:13 and 2023 will be my final season as professional cyclist.
00:16 Right now, there's no need to talk
00:19 about my short and long-term plans.
00:22 I'll always be a cyclist, that's for sure.
00:25 But for this final period,
00:29 I'd like to just enjoy doing what has made me happy
00:31 for the last 25 years, and that's simply to race.
00:35 It's been a brutal couple of weeks here in Italy
00:39 for the riders, teams, organizers, and fans,
00:42 but more importantly, for the people of Emilia-Romagna
00:45 who've been affected by far more than a wet bike race.
00:49 My thoughts to all those who have been affected
00:52 and suffered this past week.
00:53 Like many others, I've been struggling with sickness
00:57 during the race, on top of some effects
01:00 from unfortunate crashes,
01:01 but I've had an absolutely incredible group of people
01:05 around me, whether they're in Kazakhstan,
01:07 to get me through, and I cannot thank this group
01:11 of friends enough for the support
01:12 and the memories we've created here.
01:14 We've tried and will continue to try
01:17 to get the victory I believe we can achieve this Giro.
01:21 Cycling's been my life for over 25 years.
01:26 (child babbling)
01:29 I've lived an absolute dream.
01:31 The bike's given me opportunities to see the world,
01:35 meet incredible people, both involved
01:39 and not involved in the sport,
01:40 a lot of whom I'm proud to now call friends.
01:44 It's taught me so much about life, about dedication,
01:49 loyalty, companionship and teamwork,
01:52 sacrifice, humility and perseverance.
01:56 All important things, but now as a father,
02:01 I can show my children.
02:02 Today is my son Kasper's fifth birthday.
02:07 I'm fortunate to rest today and I can see
02:10 my beautiful family and spend his birthday with him.
02:14 I think it's important that now I can be there
02:16 every birthday for my wife, Peter, and all our children.
02:21 It's important I can see all the school concerts.
02:24 It's important that I can support them
02:27 in their sporting competitions.
02:28 And it's important I'm able to run around with them
02:32 without fear of injuries or getting sick.
02:35 This race is an important place in my heart
02:40 as a cyclist and a person.
02:41 The Giro d'Italia gave me my first grand tour wins in 2008.
02:46 Italy was my home for many years during my career.
02:50 And the people here welcome me as one of their own.
02:53 Those are tough conditions.
02:56 I've absolutely loved racing every kilometre so far.
02:59 So I feel it's the perfect opportunity to say
03:03 with absolute joy in my heart
03:05 that this will be my final Giro d'Italia.
03:08 2023 will be my final season.