The quiet Ain commune of Saint-Vulbas burst into life as the Tour de France visited for the conclusion of stage 5. As a village of only 1,200 residents, it may not historically have had much of a claim to fame, though Mark Cavendish changed all that on Wednesday afternoon.
The Manxman scored his history-making 35th stage win, moving one clear of Eddy Merckx, having sped clear of Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Alexander Kristoff (Uno-X Mobility) at the end of the Tour's second sprint showdown. It was no surprise that the Astana Qazaqstan rider's achievement was the main topic of conversation after four hours of otherwise dull racing.
Cavendish's former teammate – at Team Sky and as part of the British track racing team – Geraint Thomas was on hand to give his opinion on the great achievement of his old friend.
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"It's unbelievable. Super happy for him," Thomas told the waiting press just beyond the finish line. "To continue to do what he does at his age – he's 39 and everyone says you get slower as you get older – he's proven that wrong, really. It's unbelievable what he does and I'm super happy for him."
Cavendish has come through a challenging start to the Tour, having battled the heat, illness, and the Apennines on the opening stage to Rimini. The race's first sprint stage, in Turin on stage 3, also saw Cavendish well out of the reckoning after he was caught behind a mass crash inside the final 3km.
Last summer, his first Tour with Astana Qazaqstan, saw him finish three times among the top six as Philipsen sped to three stage wins en route to the green points jersey before a crash on stage 9 broke his collarbone and put him out of the race.
The past two Tours have seen many onlookers write the sprinter off in his quest for win number 35, but Thomas – who last May helped Cavendish win the Giro d'Italia's closing stage – has never had any doubts, he said.
"I thought he could. I called it on my pod [cast] anyway, so if you'd listen then you'd know," Thomas joked. "He always suffers, he always has a bad day in the mountains or whatever. I always knew he could get through it with a good team around him, all committed to him.
"He just has to be there and see the finish line, you know? He's always got a shout for the win. It's unbelievable. It's great that he's got that record alone now, not sharing it with anyone. Chapeau."
At the age of 39, Cavendish still has a couple of years to go to break another Tour de France record – that of the race's oldest stage winner. Belgian racer Pino Cerami holds that achievement, having triumphed in Pau at the 1963 race at the grand old age of 41.
Cavendish is set to retire at the end of the current season and so Cerami's record is safe. Thomas said that he isn't likely to call it a day immediately after his record-breaking stage win, however.
"I told him that in the ASO briefing, 'Mate, if you win this stage, just drop your bike and walk away'," Thomas said.
"But he's like 'Nah, lad. If I win the first one, then I'll want to win more.' He's definitely going to hang around, isn't he? He's unbelievable and I wouldn't put it past him to win another one."
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