Cavendish was the only one of the eight British riders on the start line not to finish the race – the Manxman leaving the race before the Alps to complete his preparations for the Rio 2016 omnium – and all eight put their own mark on the race.

Froome, a double stage winner himself alongside winning his third overall title, was backed by three Brits, in the form of Geraint Thomas, Ian Stannard and Luke Rowe at Team Sky.

• Tour de France 2016: British stage wins
  

  Stage one – Mark Cavendish (Dimension Data)
  Stage three – Cavendish
  Stage six – Cavendish
  Stage seven – Steve Cummings (Dimension Data)
  Stage eight – Chris Froome (Team Sky)
  Stage 14 – Cavendish
  Stage 18 – Froome

Indeed, it was Thomas’ bike on which Froome finished stage 19 after his crash on the descent of the Montee de Bisanne.

The Welshman did not mount his own GC challenge this time out, but still managed to finish 15^th overall despite riding solely in the serve of Froome – equaling his career-best result of 2015.

Away from Team Sky, Cavendish and Steve Cummings were responsible for all five of Dimension Data’s stage wins – no team managed more – with the former rising to second in the all-time list of stage winners behind only the great Eddy Merckx.

Cavendish’s victory on stage six, in a straight drag race with fierce rival Marcel Kittel (Etixx-QuickStep), was proof the Manx Missile has lost none of the phenomenal ability which has established him as the Tour’s greatest ever sprinter.

Cummings, meanwhile, escaped to victory on stage seven of this year’s race to repeat his stage win of 2015. The Merseysider has since forced his way into the Team GB squad for Rio 2016 after initially being overlooked.

But of all the Brits it was Froome, of course, who impressed most – his victory just as impressive as his two previous wins but delivered in a very different manner.

Daredevil descending and sprinting from an opportunist four-man breakaway are not qualities we expected to see from Froome, but it was by doing exactly that – making the race, and not waiting for something to happen – he put his rivals on the back foot.

Froome is 31, and while he says he has not set a finite target of Tour de France wins in his career, he must surely be targeting Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain’s joint-record mark of five apiece.

And Team Sky’s control of the race owes much to the sum of its parts, with Stannard and Rowe – who will get their individual chances in the Classics – and Thomas integral cogs in the wheel.

The Tour de France has become synonymous with British success in recent years, and this Tour may well go down as one of the best of the lot.