SIR Mark Cavendish, the man who has given the Isle of Man more worldwide publicity than anyone in history, has admitted he was “humbled” by the huge crowd that turned out to watch him ride around the “Mark Cavendish Raceway” named in his honour at King George V Park.
And he was clearly moved by the number of children on bikes who took up Cavendish’s invitation to ride with him around the track – with many hundreds joining in and having the chance to be there with one of the world’s greatest ever professional cyclists.
Cavendish also took the time to wait at the finish line for all the young cyclists, giving them all a “high five” – a gesture that brought some of the children to tears as they were greeted by their hero.
The man who has won a record 35 stages of the Tour de France in front of millions of cycling fans, said that his lap of the race track named in his honour was “an incredibly humbling recognition I will never forget.”
A crowd estimated at around 2,000 lined the re-named “Mark Cavendish Raceway” as one of the world’s most famous sporting faces completed a lap of the track where he started his cycling career as a 9 year old.
Cavendish also paid tribute to the people behind the scenes in cycling in the Isle of Man, such as Dot Tilbury MBE who has organised cycle racing for young riders for decades, and gave inspiration to Cavendish as a 5 year old.
He said, “The best thing is seeing all these children on their bikes. Every Tuesday Dot Tilbury organised events for hundreds of children here on this track, even long before I started riding.
“It makes me proud that so many great bike riders have come from the Isle of Man.
Lieutenant Governor Sir John Lorimer lowered the Manx flag to begin the special lap and said afterwards. “Mark is a legend and a most accomplished and brilliant athlete and a fantastic ambassador for the Isle of Man . . . He is so proud of his heritage and his Island and I think we should all be incredibly proud of him . . . his legacy for the Isle of Man is huge.
“He is the most accomplished athlete and we are incredibly proud of him . . . what he has done for so many generations of cyclists in the Isle of Man is to have inspired so many others – just look at the number of young cyclists here today.”
Cavendish said that it was always special to come home to the Isle of Man and to have his name linked to the track at the NSC was a “humbling honour”. He said that the Isle of Man is a special place and always will be and paid tribute to the many fans he has seen over the years all over the world waving Manx flags at the side of the road or shouting out “Hey Boy” as he rode up a mountain.
He added, “We are incredibly lucky in the Isle of Man to have the National Sports Centre on such a little island – providing facilities for all ages and all categories – it’s pretty special and we shouldn’t forget that.”
• THERE ARE 300 IMAGES FROM THE EVENT ON OUR FACEBOOK PAGE
