SIR Mark Cavendish reckons the start of the Tour De France in Edinburgh will be like nothing the event has seen before.
Scotland will host the greatest cycling show on earth for the first time in 2027.
Mark Cavendish has more Tour de France stage wins than anybody[/caption]
The Grand Depart stage will see the 114th men’s event kick-off in the capital, with the women’s Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift also taking place in the UK.
Cavendish retired at the end of last year with his 35 stage wins across 15 Tours and 17 years the highest ever.
He competed in the Grand Departs in London in 2007 and Leeds seven years later but thinks the opening in two years’ time will be on another level.
Cavendish, 39, said: “I don’t think we can comprehend what the start to the Tour De France is going to be like here.
“It’s going to be bigger than anyone can imagine. It’s really quite exciting.
“You know it’s going to be hard both from a terrain point of view and the elements. Both my British Championship successes came here in Scotland.
“More than anything I’ve had an incredible welcome here, a real personable feel and an enthusiastic support.”
It will be the first time the same country has hosted the men’s and women’s event outside France. Stages will also be held in England and Wales.
Details of where the women’s race starts will be released later in the year, as will the routes for both events.
Cobbles are sure to feature though. Asked how he rated those on The Royal Mile to race over, Cavendish – widely seen as the greatest sprinter in Tour history – grinned: “We don’t know the route yet but they’re not comfortable!
“If you could choose to go on a leisurely ride you’re probably not going to go over them but they make for a great bike race. They also make for a good aesthetic picture on television.
“That’s what The Tour does best – show the beauty of a city and a country, especially a historic town and that’s why Edinburgh fits quite perfectly into what the Tour is about.”
Cavendish’s first Tour was the 2007 event which kicked off in London. Eleven years ago two stages in Yorkshire generated over £100million for the region.
He said: “For many years London was heralded as one of the great Grand Departs.
“I remember it for not being able to stop to pee on the side because it was four or five people deep from London to Canterbury!
“Then we went to Yorkshire in 2014 and it was something else. We’re very fortunate in this country that cycling has had a massive boom in the last 20 years.
“To see the greatest cycling event on earth here is only going to inspire. I think it’s brilliant the men’s and women’s events are taking place in the same country like this too.
“Cycling has been at the forefront of our push for equality in the sport. It’s something special.
“As in any part of life I always think more can be done. But opportunity and education is the most important thing to get anyone on the tread wheel of pushing to what we ultimately want.”
General Director of The Tour Christian Prudhomme said: “It’s the first time the same country is hosting Le Tour men and women outside of France so it’s really huge.
“Why Edinburgh? It’s a magical city. You are twenty minutes from the city centre and you’re in the middle of nowhere.
“Two years ago I walked to the beach and it’s only forty minutes away. In the Tour De France, what’s very important is the helicopter shots.
“Edinburgh and Scotland will offer a magnificent backdrop to the Tour. It’s geography, culture, pride. All these things are in the British bid.”
Bid chair Paul Bush added: “The first discussion I had with Christian and the team was in 2007. It developed with time.
“Christian has challenged all of us. He challenged us to dream and think big. When we went back to Paris two years ago, we said about bringing the two races together and he smiled and said it was wonderful.
“It brings men’s and women’s sports on the same platform and that gender equity is critical.”
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