Mark Cavendish has backtracked on an explicit gesture he made at the finish of yesterday’s second stage of the Tour of Romandie, where he wheeled across the finish line holding two fingers up.
The gesture, which in Britain and several other countries represents precisely the same as a single index finger, was meant for his critics, whom Cavendish later branded as ‘idiots’ in his press conference.
He also referred to unnamed journalists, who he said know ‘jack sh*t’ about the sport.
The HTC Columbia rider has now issued an apology via his team, saying that he regretted the move.
"I want to publicly apologize for the gesture I made on the finish line of the Tour de Romandie yesterday. I did want to make a statement to my critics but I realize that making a rude gesture on the finish line is not the best way to do that,” he said.
“I apologize to everybody watching the race and especially the kids. I am not proud of releasing the feelings in that way. I hope I can redeem myself and show my feelings and passion for cycling with some exciting results in the next couple of months rather than with gestures such as the one yesterday.”
Today’s stage of the Tour de Romandie is a time trial, while the two final legs of the race are mountainous. Peter Sagan (Liquigas) leads prologue winner Marco Pinotti (HTC Columbia) by a second.