Mark Cavendish has written his name in the history books of the Tour de France with a historic victory in the run-in to Saint-Vulbas.
Cavendish, 39, netted his 35th stage win on Stage 5 of the Grande Boucle – surpassing Eddy Merckx, widely considered the greatest cyclist of all time, at the top of the rankings.
The Manx Missile has been eyeing the record ever since he equaled the Belgian’s 34 stage wins, set in 1975, during the 2021 edition of the race. However, he was dropped for the 2022 lap of France, in favour of Fabio Jakobson, before returning for the 2023 race with a new team.
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The 39-year-old had announced that was his last try at the record, but after breaking his collarbone during the Tour, he came out of retirement for one last shot this summer.
Florence played host to the Grand Depart this summer, and as temperatures soared to almost 40 degrees, Cavendish was left suffering from heat stroke as he threw up on the side of the road.
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There had been fears he would miss the time cut on the first stage – and be booted out of the race as a result – but he was able to make it by under one minute.
And after a hilly day on Sunday, a crash on Monday, and some Alpine passes on Tuesday, Cavendish has achieved his dreams. Wednesday’s stage, along the valleys of the Alps, was most likely going to end in a bunch sprint – where Cavendish is at his best.
The Manx Missile’s Astana team delivered him brilliantly to the line, where he hit the front in the final 200m to take home the win and the record.
Cavendish’s glam wife Peta Todd was reduced to tears as she told ITV she couldn’t believe it.
The Manx Missile took his first stage victory in 2008, but has struggled for wins in recent years. His last Tour win came in 2021, months after he rolled across the line at Gent-Wevelgem, in late 2020, crying – revealing he was out of contract in the winter, and he didn’t have a team for next season.
He has also been forced to take time away from the sport after two separate battles with the Epstein–Barr virus in 2017 and 2018.
Cavendish can now extend his lead at the top of the standings with another sprint stage on the cards on Thursday.