Mark Cavendish breaks collarbone in Stage 8 crash at 2023 Tour de France as record bid ends

ByBen Snowball

Updated 08/07/2023 at 18:34 GMT

Mark Cavendish will finish his career on 34 Tour de France stage wins, tied with Belgian legend Eddy Merckx, after a heartbreaking crash on Stage 8. The Manx Missile was left clutching his shoulder after an innocuous touch of wheels in the peloton caused him to hit the tarmac. It was later confirmed he had broken his right collarbone in the crash, just a day after missing out on a record win.

Mark Cavendish's hopes of a record 35th stage win at the Tour de France are over after he crashed out on Stage 8.

Cavendish (Astana Qazaqstan), who will retire at the end of the season, hit the tarmac with 61km remaining clutching his right shoulder. He was immediately attended to by medical staff, who helped him off the road and into an ambulance.

His Astana Qazaqstan later confirmed he had broken his collarbone, while a screw from a previous surgery had also come loose.

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He returned to the Tour in 2023 tied with Belgian great Eddy Merckx on 34 stage wins, even if he insisted the hype around his quest for the outright record was "irrelevant".

The 38-year-old was denied a fairytale win on Friday when a mechanical issue saw Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin–Deceuninck) overhaul him in the finale to Stage 7.

• 'Cavendish was almost nailed on to win a stage... it's so sad'
• 'Bitterly disappointed' - Cavendish laments mechanical issues on Stage 7

After a brilliant 17-year career in the pro peloton, Cavendish is widely considered the greatest sprinter of all time.

He boasts wins in the points classification at all three Grand Tours and counts victories at Milano-San Remo (2009) and the Road World Championships (2011) on his palmares.

'He'll be torn up about it, it's just so sad' – Blythe reacts to Cavendish crash

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