Well, as much as I can be.”Cavendish currently rides for Bahrain McLaren team which is headed by his old coach Rod Ellingworth.“I’m loving it, absolutely loving it,” Cavendish said. We want to go out and race, that’s obvious. ... who joined his old coach Ellingworth at Bahrain-McLaren on a one-year deal after two seasons dogged by illness … And it’s nice to have come out of that, and to look for the positives.”Cavendish was diagnosed with clinical depression in August 2018. Mark Cavendish to take indefinite break from cycling due to illness “That season was phenomenal. Mark Cavendish is chasing Eddy Merckx's Tour de France record of 34 stage wins this summer. Mark Cavendish to take indefinite break from cycling due to illness The British athlete has said he's "not felt physically myself" and "there's been something not quite right" this season. That’s physical, mental, the passion for it. MARK CAVENDISH is not taking part in the 2019 Tour de France - and Express Sport is on hand to explain why. Mark Simon Cavendish MBE (born 21 May 1985) is a Manx professional road racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam Bahrain–McLaren. Mark Cavendish says he is on the road to recovery after battling with depression and illness.The 34-year-old has been locked inside his home gym before, facing his own personal fight against depression and the Epstein-Barr virus in the past two years.But this time it is different and Cavendish is in a positive mood, saying: “I’m actually winning. “His form is not like 2016 but he’s getting there,” Ellingworth said. Britain's Mark Cavendish has returned to racing after three months out with illness in the Tour of Slovenia. “I’ve battled quite hard with depression during this time. "I'd like to thank everyone for the incredible support I've received and I look forward to seeing you all out on the road again soon. “OK, we’re not going anywhere to race right now but there’s a plan to the season, not just for me but for everybody.”Ellingworth has some understanding of what Cavendish has dealt with physically, having been “knocked for six” when he suffered from Epstein-Barr himself back in 1995-96.The former British Cycling and Team Sky coach knew the team was taking on something of a project when they signed Cavendish on an initial one-year deal this winter. But it is what it is. Mark Cavendish will take an indefinite break from cycling "due to the presence of the Epstein-Barr virus".The 33-year-old's team Dimension Data confirmed that he had been "unknowingly training and racing" with the bug for a number of months.The Epstein-Barr virus is most commonly known as being the cause of glandular fever.Cavendish said in a statement on Dimension Data's website: "This season, I've not felt physically myself and despite showing good numbers on the bike, I have felt that there's been something not right. "Cavendish has won 30 Tour de France stages in his career, putting him second on the all-time list. ... convinced he had recovered from illness … Mark Cavendish will miss a second successive Tour de France, but this time there were no complaints about being excluded from his team's plans. ... Due to the Epstein-Barr Virus diagnosis which caused the illness, Cavendish … “I was dark,” he said. Mark Cavendish has been training with the virus for months Mark Cavendish has been ravaged by illness and injury for more than two years now, but he lives for July and will be hoping for a revival of fortunes on … There’s worse problems in the world than a few athletes not being able to compete right now.”In 2016, Cavendish claimed the most recent of his 30 Tour de France stage wins before leaving the race a week early to travel to Rio, where he took Olympic silver in the omnium race.After his 2017 Tour de France campaign ended in a stage five crash, there followed a long battle with the Epstein-Barr virus, prolonged by an initial failure to diagnose it.It was a period that changed Cavendish’s perspective.“It’s not just been my physical health which has been dealt a blow over the last couple of years,” he said. Mark Cavendish joined the Bahrain Mclaren team at the start of 2020 on a one-year-deal Mark Cavendish joined the Bahrain Mclaren team at the start of 2020 on a one-year-deal Mark Cavendish was diagnosed with clinical depression in 2018 Mark Cavendish poses wins a silver medal in the men's omnium race at the Rio Olympic Games Messi stay unlikely, says Barca presidential candidateBrundle: Ferrari's painful fall, Hamilton's perfectionMark Cavendish says he is 'on the other side' of depression
"I'm now looking forward to taking the time necessary in order to get back to 100% fitness, before then returning to racing again at peak physical condition. "Having received expert medical advice as a result of the findings, I've been advised to take a period of total rest in order to fully recover. "Given this and on the back of these medical results, I'm glad to now finally have some clarity as to why I haven't been able to perform at my optimum level during this time. Bahrain-McLaren team principal Rod Ellingworth has admitted it is “hard to say” whether Mark Cavendish will race at the Tour de France again. But after the dark days of his battle with illness, this time Cavendish cannot feel envy for what he might be missing. Cavendish, who was controversially left out of the Team Dimension Data squad last summer after battling his way back from illness and injury, admitted he had needed more racing in … "“He came to us one or two out of 10. "The unknown of when you’re going back racing, I had that for two years, being on the indoor trainer, in the gym every day for two years trying to get back.“OK, it was interspersed with some racing, but now I’ve been doing that and feeling good.“I’m a racer, we’re all racers.