Cavendish breaks the Tour de France stage record

With a thrilling sprint finish in Saint Vulbas, Mark Cavendish overtook the great Eddy Merckx and established the record for most stage wins in the Tour de France. This was his 35th victory in the greatest race in cycling.

In what is anticipated to be his farewell Tour, the 39-year-old won stage five with a spectacular finish. He celebrated by raising his arms in the air and crossing the finish line first, then getting embraced by his teammates.

The unprecedented victory comes a year after Cavendish was beaten to a record-breaking victory by Jasper Philipsen and suffered a race-ending collision on stage eight.

Since winning his 34th stage in 2021, Cavendish and Belgian Merckx had shared the record for the most stage victories on the Tour.

Though he had intended for last year to be his fourteenth and last Tour, his desire to complete his career with the all-time Tour stage record inspired him to undertake another comeback.

Delaying his retirement plans by a year, Cavendish—already considered the greatest sprinter of all time—has now achieved his long-awaited goal.

Due to struggles with illness, injuries, and despair, the British player did not win a single match in 2019 or 2020, which led him to believe that his career may be gone.

However, in 2021, he made a stunning comeback to the Belgian Quick Step team, winning four stages of the Tour.

After suffering a broken collarbone in a crash last year while on the verge of making history, the Manx Missile's race was abruptly halted. However, he determined he could not let his career end there.

With a characteristic dash to the line, Cavendish therefore reached the record-breaking moment in Saint Vulbas, fulfilling a long-felt destiny.