DOHA: British rider Mark Cavendish, appearing for new team Dimension Data, is eyeing a winning performance at this week’s Tour of Qatar.
The 30-year-old is one of top riders at this week’s Tour of Qatar, now into it’s 15th edition.
“We’d like to win. We’d like to win at least a stage. We want to be visible and if you are here, it means you’re going to be at the front,” Cavendish said yesterday.
“I believe we can be very successful with the riders we have here,” the 2013 Tour of Qatar champion said.
Cavendish, who featured at the Tour of Dubai last week, said he was enjoying his partnership with Dimension Data.
“I’ve only done four days of racing but I’m really loving it. Our training camp was great,” Cavendish said.
“The atmosphere is brilliant. It’s really relaxed. The difference with Etixx is simple: one is Belgian, the other is South African. The difference is as big as that between the two hemispheres where both teams belong,” he said.
When asked about his prospects at the 2016 World Track Championships or the Olympic Games, Cavendish said he will be in a better position to comment on his chances later this week.
“I have to see how I am at the end of this race to decide if I’m going to the track World championships. I’ll make a call then,” Cavendish said.
“Concerning the Olympics, every single day counts. It might not be do-able. I might realise in a few weeks that I have to change everything. There are very few riders who can do the road and the track at the highest level, but I think I can do that,” he added.
“I’ve won road races and done well on the track. In 2008, I was World Champion and won in De Panne the same week. It’s harder now because track cycling isn’t what it used to be. The more you rode and trained, the better it worked. As simple as that.
“Now with the omnium, there are three sprint events. It’s so specific that you need to do specific work for it. It’s not about your endurance anymore. That’s the hardest thing to try and calculate. I think it’s do-able.
“With careful planning I can do it. I might not win anything. I want to win throughout the year, on the track and the road, but I might not win anything,” Cavendish said.
Katusha rider Alexander Kristoff said he is ‘feeling great’ ahead of today’s first stage at Tour of Qatar.
“In training, I felt OK. Based on the data, everything looks normal, similar to last year,” Kristoff said.
“I think I should be good but you never know how the others are. Some guys have already done some racing and maybe they have a little bit more speed in the legs. We will see,” he added.
“Qatar is very important in my build up for the classics. It’s normally very hard racing with many classic riders here,” Kristoff said.
The Peninsula
