Mark Cavendish's path to the Tour de France will once again run through Slovenia, with the British sprinter named in Dimension Data's line-up for the Tour of Slovenia later this month.
Cavendish, a 30-time stage winner at the Tour de France, has used the five-stage 2.HC race to prepare for July for the past three years, though he has never taken a stage win.
The 34-year-old again heads towards the Tour with question marks over his form. Having suffered with Epstein Barr virus in the past couple of years, he has only won two races since the start of 2017.
There were signs of encouragement recently as he revealed at the Tour of California that he had cleared the Epstein Barr threshold for the first time in two years, although he did not finish the race.
He will now use the Tour of Slovenia - which runs from June 19-23 - to build his form to a point where he can be competitive again in the Tour de France sprints and move closer to Eddy Merckx's record of 34 stage wins.
Cavendish will be joined in the Dimension Data line-up for Slovenia by fellow sprinter Giacomo Nizzolo, whose best stage placing at the recent Giro d'Italia was fifth. Cavendish also has his trusted lead-out man Mark Renshaw, along with road captain Bernhard Eisel. Jay Robert Thomson, Lars Bak, and Jacques Janse Van Rensburg round out the seven-man squad.
Dimension Data for Tour of Slovenia: Mark Cavendish, Giacomo Nizzolo, Mark Renshaw, Bernhard Eisel, Jay Robert Thomson, Lars Bak, Jacques Janse Van Rensburg.
