Mark Cavendish Debuts in Los Angeles World Championships

 

Interview by British Cycling's Larry Hickmott

>>Back to 2005 UCI World Track Championship Home Page

 

Above: World Track Championship Scratch Race and Mark leads the sprint out at the bell.

 

 A rider making his debut in the 2005 Track Worlds is Mark Cavendish. Coming originally from Laxey on the Isle of Man, Mark has come a long way since he started racing in 1999. He didn't hang about collecting trophies and in 2000, he won the Nationals under 14s. Then, 12 months ago after some impressive performances as a junior, he was invited to join the Great Britain Under 23 Academy.

 

Under the guidance of Rod Ellingworth, Mark and the team were shown the ropes of what it was like to be a GB rider and all the discipline that goes along with that. I asked Mark to give us an example of just how disciplined they were told to be to which he replied "we had a team plan at one of the races last year (under 23 series) and it didn't exactly go right for us when we rode like wallys. We missed the break and Rod was not best pleased. We got home quite late and Rod had us out early the next morning in the rain doing through and off efforts for quite a distance (four to 5 hours). It wasn't an enjoyable ride but it did make you think you don't want to do it again."

 

Having such a tough task master, I asked Mark what he thought of how Rod had handled his role in taking this group of riders from talented teenagers to senior World Championship contenders in only 12 months. "He has been great. I can't fault his coaching and he and Simon have worked wonders with us. The amount we have come on this year is unbelievable. I think he's one of the best in the World at what he does."

 

The 'reward' for the Academy riders after a tough year was a long stint in Australia to race a World Track Cup. "It was the first time we had been away for that long and in reality it was basically the same --- riding with the academy --- but in another part of the World" Mark explained. "Sure you start to get a bit homesick but we were there to do a job. I do this to earn a living now, so you have to accept that and realise you're privileged to do what we love as a job."

 

"When we found out we were going to go to Oz, we were pretty excited but we also knew why we were going. From the word go we knew it wasn't going to be a holiday and that we had to work hard and perform well for GB in the World Cup and hopefully do enough to get to the World Championships. So we worked hard over Christmas and I was always out. I have never trained as hard as I did over Christmas. Then when we got to Oz, we worked hard again and did everything we could to be as professional as we could. I think that showed in our results."

 

When I asked about how he felt Sydney (World Cup) went, Mark says "It was okay but it was a bit of shock when Geraint crashed. We were a bit down after that and didn't want to train. Geraint and me had hopes of going into the Madison with maybe a win coming out of it and in the Team Pursuit, he was a key member of that as well but Matt came in and rose to the occasion. We pulled off a ride in that and Ed did a fabulous time in the individual while Tom and me did well in the Madison."

 

Asked to describe how he felt in the Madison, Mark replied, "it was okay and the bunch wasn't too big but there was some good teams there. I had been training well and I was well up for it. It was nice to get in amongst some hussle and bussle. Everything that happens in good bunch race happened, crashes, people getting lapped, taking sprints and it nearly came down to the last sprint. We missed a change on the last sprint there but the Khazaks didn't score and deny us a medal so we had some luck. That's how bunch races go."

 

It was quite an awesome performance from both Mark and Tom who hadn't really raced together that way for two or three years. But better was to come in Victoria in the Bendigo criterium.

 

Talking about his win in that race, Mark says of it looking back ? "If you had said to me a couple of years ago that I would be racing against some of the riders in that field, I wouldn't have known whether to believe it. And to perform against them is even better. I am always up for criteriums and I love them as much as bunch racing on the track. it's the same type of racing in that you have know who to go with, where to position yourself and so on. The lads did a great job for me there. We were all active doing our share throughout the race and once it came down to the last quarter of the race, the lads did an excellent job. It came down to a sprint, and it wasn't how I expected the sprint to go. I was expecting to lead it out but McKenzie got there first. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be too come round him."

 

Did he feel intimidated riding with some very experience pros like that? "The more a rider has the results like McKenzie and McGory, the more they are going to have the respect of the riders, more so than us who haven't done anything. And when you're racing them, you're trying to earn their respect by racing hard, not be scared to have a go, and show you know what you're doing."

 

After not doing as well as in the Madison in Bendigo as he would have liked, Mark and Ed Clancy along with sprinter Matthew Crampton, travelled to Los Angeles for the Worlds. They soon found themselves in a different world to the one that they had been drilled in for the last 12 months. Prior to LA, they had to look after their bikes, wash their kit, prepare their own bottles just like any other cyclist does. In LA though, they now had the staff at their beck and call and it was something Mark was more than appreciative of after the time in the academy.

 

When you come here, you appreciate everything they do for you. We have a UK SI bike to ride, the mechanics do everything for us on our bikes, the kit and bottles are washed for you and you do appreciate it a lot. The riders as well have been happy to help us as we're new to this type of riding and event."

 

The payoff for GB though is that the riders at this level are expected to perform to the standard the coaches know they can do and Mark is up for it. "I know I have the form of my life at the minute and I can't get any fitter now. I just need to make sure I don't bottle it on the day. I haven't raced this standard of race before so its going to be the biggest bike race I have ever done. Last night is the first night I have gone to bed without going through the race in my head for a few weeks now. What's going to happen, who to watch."

'Our Cav' has also done his home work saying "even the riders I haven't raced against, I know what their strengths and weaknesses are. In bunch racing its as much to do with your head as your legs. You have to go in there and be prepared to think in the race and hopefully I'll be able to do that in this race".

He does admit though that being here at the Worlds is surreal. "If you had asked me six months ago, I wouldn't have believed it. I have though been determined to prove people wrong who didn't believe in me and I feel I have done that. Rod and Jonesy have done a great job with us and got two of us to the Worlds which is great".

 

Mark is also thankful that he isn't alone in making his Worlds debut in LA. There with him are three others, one a rider he has spent many an hour with since the academy was formed, Ed Clancy along with Geraint Thomas who isn't riding but is there to make the learning experience a combined one for them all. And once the Worlds are over, the hard work is only beginning as he sets off for Majorca and a stage race. His next big goal is the Commonwealth Games next year where he would ride for the Isle of Man and perhaps provide them with a medal or two. Good luck to Mark in the coming days and for 2005.