Crash forces Cavendish out of Abu Dhabi Tour

British sprint king Mark Cavendish made an early exit from the Abu Dhabi Tour yesterday after crashing before the official start of the first stage.

“Mark Cavendish went down in the neutral zone, falling on the same shoulder he broke last year. He got up and chased back to the peloton but had to abandon soon after,” tweeted Team Dimension Data.

The former world champion collided with a car that had braked suddenly before reaching the start line in the western desert of Madinat Zayed, according to the official Abu Dhabi television channel.

Cavendish, appearing to be suffering from shoulder and neck pain, was examined by a doctor and attempted to re-enter the peloton but bowed out a few kilometres later.

The 32-year-old, who won the third stage of the Dubai Tour on February 8, was one of the headliners of the five-stage Abu Dhabi Tour, which includes three stages particularly favourable to sprinters.

Cavendish was forced to abandon the Tour de France last year after a heavy crash at the fourth stage finish line left him with a broken shoulder, triggering the disqualification of winner Peter Sagan.

MOST VIEWED

PM imposes nationwide Covid restrictions, curfew over Delta scare
Prime Minister Hun Sen late on July 28 instructed the municipal and provincial authorities nationwide to strictly enforce Covid-19 measures including curfew for two weeks from July 29 midnight through August 12 to stem the new coronavirus Delta variant. The instruction came shortly after he issued a directive
Two luxury hotels latest quarantine options for inbound travellers
The Inter-Ministerial Committee to Combat Covid-19 has designated two luxury hotels as alternative quarantine options for travellers who wish to enter Cambodia through Phnom Penh International Airport – Sokha Phnom Penh Hotel & Residence and the Courtyard by Marriott Phnom Penh. In a notice detailing guidelines issued
Provinces on Thai borders put in lockdown amid Delta fears
The government has decided to place several border provinces in lockdown for two weeks in a bid to prevent the new coronavirus Delta variant spreading further into community. According a directive signed by Prime Minister Hun Sen late on July 28, the provinces include Koh Kong,
Delta spreading in Kingdom
Cambodia has so far detected more than 200 cases of the highly contagious coronavirus Delta variant, with 109 found on July 31 and August 1. The Ministry of Health has expressed deep concerns that the variant may have already reached communities and be spreading as some of the cases
US' Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccines arrive
The first batch of 455,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine donated by the US touched down in Phnom Penh on the morning of July 30. They are part of the total 1,060,100 doses the US has pledged to provide to Cambodia through the World Health Organisation-led (
China denies Mekong hacking
As the US and its allies joined hands last week to expose what they allege to be China’s Ministry of State Security’s malicious cyber activities around the world, the attention also turned to Cambodia with the US Department of Justice claiming that four