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Mark Cavendish selected for UCI Track World Cup

Manxman to make his track cycling return for Great Britain in Hong Kong

Mark Cavendish will make his return to the Great Britain track team for the Hong Kong round of the UCI Track World Cup, as expected.

The Manx Missile will ride in the omnium as he joins a youthful men’s endurance squad for the event, which takes place on January 16 and 17.

Mark Cavendish will ride the omnium at the Track World Cup (pic: Michael Poole)

Cavendish hopes to earn a spot in the British squad for the Rio 2016 Olympics, and this represents his first international selection since the 2009 World Championships.

And the former Madison world champion is keen to test his mettle on the international stage in Hong Kong before he heads to Australia to make his debut with new road team Dimension Data.

“It will be my first World Cup on the track for a lot of years I think, so I’m looking forward to it,” he said.

“I’m used to doing more events at a world cup, the Madison, the scratch, and now just doing the omnium is a little bit different from what I’m used to, but I’m super looking forward to it.”

Great Britain will field a relatively inexperienced men’s endurance squad in the event, with Germain Burton, Matt Gibson, Ollie Wood and Chris Latham completing the line-up.

The women’s endurance squad will see Elinor Barker, Laura Trott, Jo Rowsell Shand and Ciara Horne bidding for team pursuit success, meanwhile, with Emily Nelson in for the injured Katie Archibald.

Jason Kenny heads up a strong men’s sprint squad, who are still bidding for Olympic qualification points, with Philip Hindes, Matt Crampton and Callum Skinner also included.

And the Great Britain squad is completed by their female sprinting counterparts Becky James, Kate Marchant and Jess Varnish.

Cavendish also raced in British colours in Derby last year when he paired up with Sir Bradley Wiggins to win the Madison (pic: Michael Poole)

Technical director Shane Sutton is pleased to be welcoming Cavendish into the fold, but has urged all of his riders to impress with the World Championships – to be held in London next month – fast approaching.

“Having a rider of Mark Cavendish’s stature in the squad is a great boost for everyone,” Sutton said. “What he has achieved throughout his career is phenomenal and the only thing he is missing is an Olympic medal.

“He is really hungry and selection for Hong Kong is the first step along the path to achieving his goal.

“A lot of eyes will now be looking towards Rio but we also have the incentive of a home UCI Track World Championships in London in two months’ time.

“Selection for that event is just around the corner so it’s important that the riders perform well in Hong Kong.”

Great Britain squad for UCI Track World Cup 2015/16 round three (Hong Kong)

Men’s endurance
Germain Burton
Mark Cavendish
Matt Gibson
Chris Latham
Ollie Wood

Women’s endurance
Elinor Barker
Ciara Horne
Emily Nelson
Joanna Rowsell Shand
Laura Trott

Men’s sprint
Matt Crampton
Philip Hindes
Jason Kenny
Callum Skinner

Women’s sprint
Becky James
Katy Marchant
Jess Varnish

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