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Cavendish returning to the track, with an eye to the 2016 Rio Olympics?

published 22 August 2013

Omega Pharma-QuickStep sprinter registered for The Belgian Open

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An ecstatic Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) after winning stage 13 of the Tour de France(Image credit: Bettini Photo)

Mark Cavendish had a good time trial(Image credit: Bettini Photo)

Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma Quick Step) gets back underway after a crash.(Image credit: AFP)

Mark Cavendish has taken the first step towards a possible return to the track again, with an eye on the 2016 Rio Olympics. Unlike former teammate Bradley Wiggins, though, he is not expected to stop with road racing.

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The Omega Pharma-QuickStep rider has registered to ride The Belgian Open on September 6-7 in Gent. That is a new event, which will allow him to earn the necessary points to participate in the world cup races and ultimately the Olympics.

Cavendish apparently did not inform his team, as team manager Patrick Lefevere told Het Nieuwsblad that he did not know of the Briton's participation in the track event.

The Belgian Open and other track events would apparently fit in with Cavendish' road racing schedule. His last race was the Tour of Denmark earlier this month, where he won the final stage, and his next scheduled race is the Tour of Britain, September 15 -22. He will not ride the road World Championships this year.

Cavendish started his career on the track, winning the word title in Madison in 2005 and 2008. In Gent, he would ride the scratch and pursuit races, the same ones he rode when he last appeared in the track world championships in 2009.