In this, our final episode of Kilometre 0 from the 2021 Tour de France, Lionel Birnie looks back at Mark Cavendish's career with a series of memories from the last 13 years covering the Manx sprinter's career.

From an interview in a two-star hotel in the south of France after his third stage win in 2008, to a game of chess in London later that year, to an unfortunate incident with cramp in an Essex restaurant Lionel recalls some of his meetings with Cavendish, telling the story of his career as he closed in on Eddy Merckx's record of 34 stage wins.

With thanks to Ian Boswell, Richard Moore, Daniel Friebe, Orla Chennaoui and Edward Pickering for additional material. Photo by Simon Gill.

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