PARIS: Cycling great Mark Cavendish announced his retirement from the sport on Saturday, writing on social media that his final race will be Sunday's Tour de France Singapore Criterium.
"Sunday will be the final race of my professional cycling career," wrote the 39-year-old British rider, the record stage winner on the Tour de France with 35, in a post on Instagram.
"Cycling has given me so much and I love the sport. I've always wanted to make a difference in it and now I am ready to see what the next chapter has in store for me."
Cavendish made Tour de France history last July when he eclipsed Eddy Merckx's record which had stood since 1975.
"I am lucky enough to have done what I love for almost 20 years and I can now say that I have achieved everything that I can on the bike," the rider from the Isle of Man said.
Cavendish won the world road race title in 2011 and an omnium silver medal at the 2016 Olympics.
Over two decades he won 165 races, including 17 stages in the Giro d'Italia and three in the Vuelta a Espana.--AFP