It doesn't matter if it was Alejandro Valverde in 2022, Annemiek van Vleuten and Peter Sagan in 2023 or now Mark Cavendish in 2024: whenever a retiring rider has had a significant impact on an era of the sport – or in Cavendish's case, perhaps an even greater timespan - the resulting media attention can threaten to eclipse the news that other top names are also handing up their wheels.
The end of 2024 is no different. For the 2025 season, it's worth remembering that apart from the massive loss of Cavendish, we'll also be missing retirees of the calibre of Olympic and World Champion Grace Brown, with the charisma of Colombian 'rock star' racer Rigoberto Urán, the breakaway genius of Thomas De Gendt or the behind-the-scenes dedication of a top team worker like Christine Majerus. And that is to name but a few.
