Sir Mark Cavendish has praised the ‘beautiful’ reception laid out on in his honour in the capital this afternoon.
The event was organised by the Isle of Man government who planned it as an opportunity to honour one of cycling’s most iconic heroes.
Cavendish is officially the most prolific Tour De France stage winner and the greatest road sprinter of all time.
He is also an Olympic silver medalist, Commonwealth Games gold medalist and a former road race champion.
According to the government, the event was an opportunity for the Department of Education, Sport and Culture to announce more details of the Sir Mark Cavendish Raceway, a scheme to honour and celebrate Sir Mark’s achievements, which is due to open early next year.
Watch more videos of Sir Mark Cavendish’s lap of honour at the NSC by clicking through the playlist below - there are 10 videos in total to watch
Speaking after the lap, Mark said: ‘It was really nice.
‘It was a really, really beautiful reception, and really made me happy.
‘What made me happy was to see so many kids out riding.
I love racing. I'm a racer and I love seeing kids race.
‘But what I love even more than that is the seeing people, not just kids, people just enjoying riding a bicycle.
‘I still love riding a bicycle, and even if it's one lap round here.
‘If you see smiles on faces while peddling, you know it's a job well done as a professional and as a sports person, you can inspire people to love and do what you do as well.’
More coverage of Sir Cav’s visit is available to view on our liveblog of the event.
You can watch John Watterson’s full interview with the Manx Missile HERE: