Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) won stage 13 of the Giro d’Italia, the longest stage of the race at 254km from Busseto to Cherasco. He launched a brilliant sprint far from the finish-line that left him slumped at the roadside, gasping for air but victorious, just beyond the finish line.

Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) finished the stage safely having defended his Maglia Rosa against the flurry of attacks that came in the final climbs.

“It wasn’t a normal sprint today,” Cavendish explained after his fourth win at this year’s Giro. “The stage was long, and there were climbs in the closing kilometres; not easy climb either. I said I didn’t want to sprint today but the directors told the boys to pull. It’s my job, no? And it’s their job too, so when the director says pull, it’s normal. But I’m lucky because my team is perfect. They are always with me on the climbs, in the sprints, in the wind. It’s impossible to do nothing when they have worked so hard.”

Cavendish also said he was feeling splendid, physically as well as mentally. “More than physically good, I’m mentally in a good place at the moment. Finally, I know what this team is capable of: they’ve demonstrated it all throughout the Giro. So, more than in the legs, it puts me in good form in the head. If they’ve put every single last ounce of effort, I can do miraculous things, things I don’t believe are possible for me. It makes me excited for the next races.”

Speaking about his chances of adding to his tally at this year’s Giro, Cavendish said he had one more shot at glory. “The last stage, in Brescia. Vicenza is described as a sprint stage, but I think the final climb is too hard for me.”