"If I'd won 20, the 21st would be that driving factor. If I'd won 45, it would be the 46th" - Mark Cavendish reflects on his unrelenting will to win Tour de France stages

Whilst Mark Cavendish's time in the peloton might not yet be over, his days riding the Tour de France are. Over the years, the Manxman has written his name into the very fabric of cycling's most storied race, culminating in a historic 35th stage win at the 2024 edition of the French Grand Tour.

This time around, with the traditional bunch sprint in Paris replaced by an individual time-trial in Nice, Cavendish was also able to soak up the atmosphere of the final stage. "What a beautiful place to finish," the Astana Qazaqstan Team sprinter reflects of his Tour de France finale in conversation with SBS Sport. "This was something special. A time-trial from Monaco to Nice, as a sprinter, it meant I could just enjoy it. There was no pressure and I could just ride and absorb what the Tour de France was. Mark Renshaw in my ear, my family at the finish, it was super nice."

"It's always special the Tour de France. I'm very fortunate to have done this race 15 times and I have felt the love of my cycling fans, with my victories and with my hard times," Cavendish continues, referencing the warm reception he received throughout his Tour de France swansong. "It is just sport. It is just cycling. But it's a rollercoaster of emotions and physical demands with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. But the memories you make and the people you make them with, help you realise that at 39-years-old you're very lucky to be doing what you love most as a job."

One of the biggest names in the modern era of cycling, Cavendish's final Tour de France and his quest for stage win number 35 was one of the main stories heading into this year's edition. On stage 5 in Saint Vulbas, the 'Manx Missile' lived up to the hype once more to see off the challenge of Jasper Philipsen and move clear of the great Eddy Merckx as the rider with the most stage wins in the long and storied history of the Tour de France.

"The number is irrelevant. Having won 34 Tour de France stages, there were two people in the world most qualified to talk about how hard it is to win a Tour de France stage," Cavendish says with a wry smile. "Regardless of the number, anything you do in life, it doesn't have to be the Tour de France, it doesn't even have to be bike racing or sport, anything you do in life, you need a target. It could be a short term target or a long term target, but you need something that drives you and gets you out of bed in the morning."

"If I'd won 20, the 21st would be that driving factor. If I'd won 45, it would be the 46th. For myself, just having a goal was the main thing," Cavendish concludes. "The story it created, that's not in my control. That's just external noise. But, it made a beautiful fairy-tale at the end of it."