Inside the lead-in to the Tour de France Singapore Criterium – Could it be Mark Cavendish’s last race?

SAITAMA JAPAN NOVEMBER 02 Davide Ballerini of Italy Nicolas Vinokurov of Kazakhstan Mark Cavendish of The United Kingdom and Astana Qazaqstan Team sprint during the 10th Tour de France Saitama Criterium 2024 Time Trial Race a 32km one day race from Saitama to Saitama on November 02 2024 in Saitama Japan Photo by Rhode Van ElsenGetty Images
Mark Cavendish and his Astana Qazaqstan teammates of Nicolas Vinokurov and Davide Ballerini during the time trial in Saitama, the week before the Singapore Criterium (Image credit: Getty Images)

Mark Cavendish may have hinted in recent weeks that he wants to keep the door ajar on his racing career but, with no confirmation of any change to the retirement plans, there is still the atmosphere of a farewell celebration at the Tour de France Prudential Singapore Criterium.

Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty), Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe) and Chris Froome (Israel-Premier tech) are among those on the start list for Sunday's criterium, providing a cocktail of riders as iconic to the sport as the Singapore Sling is to the tourists lining up outside the Raffles Long Bar. 

Simone Giuliani
Australia Editor

Simone is a degree-qualified journalist that has accumulated decades of wide-ranging experience while working across a variety of leading media organisations. She joined Cyclingnews as a Production Editor at the start of the 2021 season and has now moved into the role of Australia Editor. Previously she worked as a freelance writer, Australian Editor at Ella CyclingTips and as a correspondent for Reuters and Bloomberg. Cycling was initially purely a leisure pursuit for Simone, who started out as a business journalist, but in 2015 her career focus also shifted to the sport.