There have been some remarkable tales in the Tour de France - but surely none compare with that of Lance Armstrong. He won the race seven times in a row between 1999 and 2005, in so doing beating the record of five wins jointly held by Miguel Indurain, Bernard Hinault, Eddy Merckx and Jacques Anquetil.
But that doesn't even begin to tell the whole story.
For in 1996 he faced an even greater battle when diagnosed with testicular cancer which had spread to his brain and lungs.
Doctors gave him less than a 50% chance of survival and he underwent brain surgery and extensive chemotherapy. But against all the odds he battled back not only to full health but to a remarkable return to race-riding.
He had won stages of the Tour de France before - most memorably in 1995 when he dedicated his victory in Limoges to teammate Fabio Casartelli who had died in a crash two days later, raising his arms to the skies on crossing the line.
But nothing could have prepared the Tour for what happened in 1999 when his victory transcended not just cycling, but sport as a whole.
He started off by winning the prologue amid emotional scenes and followed that up with a time trial success and victory in the mountains - the sort of dominance which had only really been seen before by the legendary Merckx.
By the time he crossed the line in Paris to worldwide acclaim he was over seven minutes in front of his nearest challenger.
That has to rank as one of the greatest achievements in any sport but Armstrong went on to rewrite the record books in the following years.
He demonstrated his new-found prowess in the mountains the following year when destroying Marco Pantani, the man who had been regarded as by far the best climber around.
He was over six minutes ahead of great German rival Jan Ullrich at the end of that 2000 Tour and it was a similar story in 2001.
That 2001 Tour again underlined Armstrong's strength in adversity as he got his US Postal team back together after a nightmare crash in the team time trial.
No such heroics were required in 2002 when he cruised to victory by seven minutes but 2003, the centenary year of the Tour, was altogether more difficult. The peloton did their best to break Armstrong and at one point he had to ride across a field to remain in contention after Joseba Beloki fell in front of him.
Again though the overall result was the same as Armstrong squeezed home by just over a minute from Ullrich despite only winning the one stage.
That handed him a record-equalling fifth consecutive win and all the old dominance was back 12 months later as he landed no fewer than five stages en route to a stunning victory.
Armstrong was able to coast into Paris with an advantage of nearly five minutes to bow out in perfect fashion. His Tour de France record is unlikely to ever be matched - but to achieve it all after beating cancer makes it all the more remarkable.
He now dedicates his time to his charity the Lance Armstrong Foundation as his legacy - and legend - goes from strength to strength.
