Image source, Getty Images

So, that was the 2014 Tour de France. It took us from Yorkshire to the podium in Paris via the Alps and Pyrenees with plenty of thrills, spills, crashes and smashes along the way before delivering us a dominant and deserved winner in the shape of Vincenzo Nibali.

It was an incredible ride and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. See you next year.

Image source, AP

Vincenzo Nibali's baby daughter Emma got a kiss from the winner of the 2014 Tour de France too.

Nibali will be joined by two Frenchmen on the podium, the first time there have been two home riders there since 1983. Jean-Christophe Peraud, 37, survived a crash earlier in the day to take second place while Thibault Pinot, 24, is third.

Yes here comes our overall winner, Vincenzo Nibali, to be presented yet again with the yellow jersey he has worn for so much of this Tour. He is wearing matching yellow shoes for the occasion, and a very broad grin on his face.

Next up is the prize for the most aggressive rider. It goes to Alessandro De Marchi, who attacked on what seemed like a daily basis. Another Italian will be making his way to the podium in a few moments too...

Thibaut Pinot, who will be back on the podium shortly to celebrate his third place overall is being called forward now for his white jersey as the best-placed young rider.

Next up on the podium is the first ever Pole to be in Paris in Polka Dots - Rafal Majka, who is the winner of the king of the mountains category.

Peter Sagan, winner of the green points jersey for sprinters is up on the podium to collect his prize. This is the third straight year he has ridden into Paris in green. No stage wins for him this time, though.

Image source, Reuters

Vincenzo Nibali, shown here kissing his wife Rachele at the finish line, has now won all three Grand Tours - the Tour de France (2014), Giro d'Espana (2013) and Vuelta a Espana (2010) - putting him in some quite exclusive company.

Other men to win all three Grand Tours:

Eddy Merckx (Belgium): Tour de France x5 (1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974), Giro d'Italia x5 (1968, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1974), Vuelta a Espana x1 (1973)

Bernard Hinault (France): Tour de France x5 (1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1985), Giro d'Italia x3 (1980, 1982, 1985), Vuelta a Espana x2 (1978, 1983)

Jacques Anquetil (France):Tour de France x5 (1957, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964), Giro d'Italia x2 (1960, 1964), Vuelta a Espana x1 (1963)

Alberto Contador (Spain): Tour de France x2 (2007, 2009), Giro d'Italia x1 (2008), Vuelta a Espana x2 (2008, 2012)

Felice Gimondi (Italy): Tour de France x1 (1965), Giro d'Italia x3 (1967, 1969, 1976), Vuelta a Espana x1 (1968)

Magnus Backstedt
Swedish cyclist on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra

"Nibali has stayed out of trouble, we've had some difficult terrain and I definitely think he's a worthy winner."

Rob Hatch
BBC Radio 5 live sports extra commentator

"This is a wonderful moment for Italy. Nibali has been dominant and aggressive without ever really having a serious rival."

Yellow Jersey
Classification

So, after almost 90 hours in the saddle over 21 days, 29-year-old Italian Vincenzo Nibali is crowned the winner of the Tour de France for the first time. He won four stages, spent 18 days wearing the yellow jersey and was nearly eight minutes clear of his nearest rival - he is truly a worthy winner!

General classification - final standings

1. Vincenzo Nibali (Ita/Astana) 89hrs 58mins 46secs

2. Jean-Christophe Peraud (Fra/AG2R) +7mins 37secs

3. Thibaut Pinot (Fra/FDJ.fr) +8mins 15secs

Marcel Kittel takes his fourth stage win of this year's Tour, and his first since the first week. Not sure how he had enough left in the tank after his struggles in the mountains but his victory today makes it all worthwhile.

1. Marcel Kittel (Ger/Giant-Shimano) 3hrs 20min 50sec

2. Alexander Kristoff (Nor/Katusha) SAME TIME

3. Ramunas Navardauskas (Lit/Garmin-Sharp) SAME TIME

Alex Haworth:, external I thought that Kittel was cooked? Brilliant end to the Tour.

Vincenzo Nibali crosses the line seconds later, and is immediately mobbed by about a million photographers.

Wow! What a finish. Germany's Marcel Kittel finds the power when it matters to beat Alexander Kristoff to the line, and take the stage win in Paris for the second successive year. His final kick was the difference, while Andre Greipel left it far too late to challenge.

But Marcel Kittel is the strongest...

Here comes Kristoff.

Katusha make their move to try to bring Alexander Kristoff clear. This is wide open though because Marcel Kittel's Giant team are fighting for position. 600m left.

Marcel Kittel has his Giant team around him and so does Mark Renshaw - who is usually Mark Cavendish's lead-out man. Peter Sagan is on his own but jumping from wheel to wheel in Cav stylee - 1.7km left.