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Mark Cavendish to race Tour of Slovenia in build-up to Tour de France

By Cycling News

published 7 June 2019

British sprinter joined by Nizzolo, Renshaw, Eisel

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Mark Cavendish (Dimension Data) on stage 6 of the 2019 Tour of California(Image credit: Getty Images)

Mark Cavendish on the podium after stage 3 of the Tour of Turkey(Image credit: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

Mark Cavendish (Dimension Data)(Image credit: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

Mark Cavendish did some work on the front late on(Image credit: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images Sport)

Mark Cavendish (Dimension Data)(Image credit: Getty Images)

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.

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Mark Cavendish clears Epstein-Barr threshold for first time in two years

Mark Cavendish battles uphill to make time cut at Tour of California

Mark Cavendish sees signs of improvement after hard week at Tour of California

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.