Matteo Trentin’s customised Specialized marks his Ruban Jaune ride in Paris-Tours

As well as founding the Tour de France, in 1936 Henri Desgrange came up with the idea for the Ruban Jaune, which is awarded to the rider with the fastest average speed in a pro race – any race – of over 200km. When a rider surpasses the previous fastest average speed the Ruban Jaune is passed on to them.

Well, in winning the 2015 Paris-Tours Matteo Trentin managed to cover the 231km in 4 hours 39 minutes at an average speed of 49.641kph, which means that the Ruban Jaune passed to him from previous holder Marco Marcato who had averaged 48.629, also in Paris-Tours, in 2012.

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To mark the honour, Specialized has added a Ruban Jaune sticker to Trentin’s Tarmac, complete with his winning speed and Italian colours. Trentin rides for Etixx-Quick Step and so his wheels and tyres were also supplied by Specialized.

His career has been spent as a domestique, with the occasional impressive win including two stages of the Tour de France as well as the Paris-Tours victory, thanks to his powerful sprint.

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The Ruban Jaune was originally awarded to Belgian rider Gustave Danneels, who averaged 41.455kph in Paris-Tours. There have only been another eleven holders since, with Peter Post keeping the title for 11 years in the 1960s and 1970s and Freddy Maertens holding it for 22 years from 1975.

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Paris-Tours has dominated the races in which the Ruban Jaune has been won, due to the flattish parcours and incredible tailwinds, although there have been two fastest wins in Paris-Roubaix and one in Paris-Brussels too.