Hushovd beat Cavendish in the race for the green points jersey in 2009

British sprinter Mark Cavendish has earmarked eight stages as ones he could win in next year's Tour de France.

The 24-year-old won an impressive six stages in 2009 to take his overall tally to 10 from three Tours.

Cavendish, who rides for Team Columbia, said: "I counted five definite sprint stages I could win and maybe eight.

"There are three in the opening week, so I'll try to grab as many wins as I can to get in the green jersey and then survive through weeks two and three."

The Manx rider finished second behind Norway's Thor Hushovd in the race for the green jersey in 2009.

The jersey is awarded to the rider who accumulates the most points during the course of the race by winning stages and intermediate sprints and is usually won by a sprinter.

Although Cavendish won six stages, including the final one in Paris, Hushovd proved more consistent in the mountain stages and intermediate sprints and triumphed by 10 points.

Cavendish won four stages on the 2008 Tour before dropping out to concentrate on the Beijing Olympics.

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