As the rain continuously poured down on the riders, Froome held his nerve on the final climb to strengthen his overall lead ahead of tomorrow’s processional stage.

The Team Sky competitor will secure yet another Yellow Jersey when he rides through the streets of Paris during the 21st and final stage, which encompasses a 113 kilometres route from Chantilly.

The 31-year-old Kenyan-born Briton has a lead of four minutes and five seconds ahead of Frenchman Romain Bardet, which will not be contested in the French capital.

In order to seal the Tour de France crown, which will give Froome a boost as he prepares to head to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, he must ride on the cobbled streets on the Champs-Elysees, one of Paris’ iconic landmarks, before crossing the line.

Froome has held the overall lead and the Yellow Jersey since the second Saturday and has managed to hold that advantage throughout, overcoming a couple of difficulties on the way to victory.

After a crash late on during stage 12 on July 14, the Briton was forced to abandon his bike and complete the section on foot, running up Mont Ventoux to provide one of the most memorable images the world’s largest bike race has ever seen.

Barring what would be a stunning collapse, Froome will enter the record books alongside Philippe Thys, Louison Bobet and Greg LeMond, who each have three Tour de France wins to their names.

He will now be hoping he can surpass the five titles won by Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain.

Movistar rider Jon Izaguirre emerged victorious in today’s stage as he broke clear from the chasing pack amid stormy conditions to finish in a time of 4hrs 6min 45sec.

Vincenzo Nibali, the winner of the 2014 edition, was among those to cross the line behind Izaguirre along with Jarlinson Pantano of the IAM Cycling team.