Isle of Man sprint superstar Mark Cavendish will lead a strong Omega Pharma team when the Tour de France begins on July 5 in Leeds, England, the team announced Monday.
Winner of 25 Tour stages, which is third on the all-time list, nine behind Belgian legend Eddy Merckx and three behind French rider Bernard Hinault, Cavendish will be supported in the sprints by Italian veteran Alessandro Petacchi as well as Australian Mark Renshaw to lead him home.
Poland's Michal Kwiatkowski, who finished 13th in 2013, is the team's main hope for a good finish in the overall standings.
Triple time-trial world champion Tony Martin is also amongst the ranks as are two other survivors from last year's edition, Matteo Trentin and Niki Terpstra.
Team
Jan Bakelants (BEL), Mark Cavendish (GBR), Michal Golas (POL), Michal Kwiatkowski (POL), Tony Martin (GER), Alessandro Petacchi (ITA), Mark Renshaw (AUS), Niki Terpstra (NED), Matteo Trentin (ITA)
Source: AFP