Tour de France: Mark Cavendish will not ride and Julian Alaphilippe also out

Mark Cavendish will not ride the Tour de France, despite equalling the all-time record for stage wins last year.

But it was always in doubt as his Quick Step-Alpha Vinyl team have long since planned for Dutch sprinter Fabio Jakobsen to compete instead.

The Tour begins in Copenhagen, Denmark on Friday.

France's world road champion Julian Alaphilippe will also miss his home Grand Tour as he continues to recover from injuries sustained in a serious crash during April's Liege-Bastogne-Liege 'Monument' one-day race.

Cavendish equalled Eddy Merckx's Tour de France record of 34 stage victories during last year's race, winning four stages.

Those successes were the high point of a fairy-tale comeback in 2021 after three years of poor form caused by injury and illness, during which at one point he signalled his intention to retire.

Cavendish's form has been good again this season, and he said he was "in better shape than last year" after winning a stage in May's Giro d'Italia, while he also became the first ever Briton to win the Milano-Torino one-day race in March.

Cavendish, who will be a reserve rider for the Tour, would have had the chance this year to surpass Merckx's record by winning one more stage.

Despite Cavendish's form and his reputation as one of the greatest sprinters of all time, Dutchman Jakobsen, 25, has won more races this season.

More to follow