Why Cavendish Loves Bananas

Mark Cavendish: The Greatest Sprinter in Tour de France History

Tour de France sprint records have gotten complicated with all the historical comparisons flying around. As someone who watched Mark Cavendish win his 35th stage in 2024, I learned everything there is to know about why the emotion of that moment won’t leave me.

He broke Eddy Merckx’s all-time record. Here’s the story of cycling’s most prolific stage winner.

The Numbers

35 Tour de France stage wins. More than anyone in history. More than Merckx. More than Bernard Hinault. More than any of the legends who came before.

Beyond the Tour: over 160 professional wins total. World champion on the road. Multiple green jersey winner at the Tour. Points classification victories at the Giro d’Italia. The record books are full of his name.

The Sprinting Style

Probably should have led with this section, honestly. Cavendish was never the biggest or most powerful sprinter. He wasn’t a pure force like some competitors. What he had was unmatched positioning, timing, and the ability to find wheels through chaos.

His signature move: sitting on wheels until the final hundred meters, then exploding past with a perfectly-timed jump. He could read a sprint better than anyone, finding gaps that shouldn’t exist and knowing exactly when to launch.

The comedowns were brutal. When sprinting went wrong, he went down hard. Crashes, injuries, rehabilitation, comeback. The cycle repeated many times over his career.

The Comebacks

Cavendish’s career should have ended several times. Injuries, depression, the Epstein-Barr virus – any of these could have been the finish. Instead, they were chapters in a longer story.

The 2021 comeback was remarkable. Seemingly finished, he returned to the Tour and won four stages. But even that wasn’t the end.

2024, at 39 years old, he returned specifically to chase Merckx’s record. One more Tour, one more chance. When he won stage 5 in Saint-Vulbas, he became the outright record holder. The oldest stage winner in Tour history, claiming the most stages anyone ever has.

The Character

Cavendish was never easy. Confident to the point of arrogance. Emotional. Combative with media and competitors. His wins were celebrations; his losses were fury.

But he earned respect from the peloton. The riders who led him out – Bernie Eisel, Mark Renshaw, later Astana’s train – would do anything for him. Teammates across his career describe genuine loyalty.

The public persona softened over time. Experience, perspective, perhaps appreciation for what the sport had given him. The Cavendish of 2024 was more gracious than the Cavendish of 2011.

Legacy

That’s what makes Cavendish’s story endearing to us cycling fans who followed every comeback. Mark Cavendish is the greatest Tour de France sprinter ever. Full stop. The record proves it, but so does the manner of winning – the variety of circumstances, the years of dominance, the comebacks from oblivion.

He redefined what a pure sprinter could accomplish over a career. The longevity, the volume of wins, the ability to stay competitive across nearly two decades – it’s unprecedented.

Watching him win stage 35 felt like watching history complete itself. Some records are made to be broken. This one might not be.