British cyclist Mark Cavendish has made history at this year’s Tour de France, by equalling Belgian Eddy Merckx’s all-time record of stage wins.

The Manx rider claimed the 34th stage victory of his Tour career when he crossed the finish line in Carcassonne to win the 13th stage of this year’s race.

Deceuninck-Quick-Step’s Cavendish has also won stages four, six and 10 on this year’s tour.

Cavendish could yet surpass Merckx’s record, with two more sprints in the final week, ending with the Champs-Elysees finale in Paris, where Cavendish has won a record four times.

It caps a remarkable turnabout in fortune for the 36-year-old sprint specialist who had hinted his career may be over after a run of poor form and illness.

Last year, Cavendish hinted he may retire from cycling at the conclusion of the Gent-Wevelgem race in Belgium.

He said that race could be his final one, but signed for Deceuninck-Quick Step for the 2021 season and was drafted onto the team’s Tour de France roster after an injury to his teammate Sam Bennett.

In 2018, Cavendish took an indefinite break from cycling “due to the presence of the Epstein-Barr virus”.

The sprinter had been “unknowingly training and racing” with the bug for a number of months.

The Epstein-Barr virus is most commonly known as being the cause of glandular fever.

Cavendish said at the time that he has “not felt physically myself and despite showing good numbers on the bike, I have felt that there’s been something not right.”

The rider turned professional in 2005 and was selected for his first Tour de France, but abandoned the race at stage eight as it reached the Alps.

In 2008, he won four stages and came first in six stages the following year.

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