After all of the build-up, it was time to deliver yesterday for Sir Bradley Wiggins. The four-time Olympic champion was in no mood to disappoint his fans and admirers as he smashed through the 54km barrier and beyond in 60 minutes. Although his initial target of 55km proved a step too far this time, the new record figures of 54.526km (33.88 miles) at the Lee Valley VeloPark, East London should provide a daunting challenge for those to come.
Tremendous effort
Summing up the tremendous effort required to push your body to its very limits, Wiggins was typically forthright (with a big slice of tongue in cheek for good measure) in his opinions afterwards.
He compared his successful attempt on the world hour record as "the closest I will ever come to knowing what it's like to have a baby."
First things first
The initial goal was to surpass fellow Britain Alex Dowsett's figures of 52.937km, the existing record set just last month. That in itself was unlikely to be a simple task, given the calibre of Dowsett as the current Commonwealth Games time trial champion from Glasgow last summer.
Wiggins had been bullish beforehand, looking to move the mark into unknown territory well beyond the old mark. There had even been suggestion of challenging Chris Boardman's disqualified (for record purposes) mark from 1996, an almost superhuman distance approaching 56.5km.
That proved elusive to Wiggins on the day, probably due to the far from ideal conditions, but he still seemed delighted afterwards to have moved the record on by almost a full mile.
Elite list of six men
The Ghent-born rider became just the sixth man to claim the double delight of a Tour de France victory and the hour record in their career.
He sits alongside such stellar names in the sport as Belgium's Eddy Merckx and Miguel Indurain of Spain in that regard. Indeed, Indurain was among those present at Lee Valley to congratulate him on his feat.
Another milestone achieved
The 35-year-old can tick off yet another of his 'things to do before I retire' milestones, after the world hour record achievement, something which he seemed to acknowledge by stating that he was "just glad it's done."
Last year he had similarly targeted a first time trial gold at the road world championships in Ponferrada, Spain.
That too was achieved thanks to his focus and determination, as he finally got the better of the time trial 'king', Germany's Tony Martin, a rider who had twice before relegated him to the silver medal.
Rio 2016 on the horizon
Another goal to establish Team Wiggins after concluding his spell with Team Sky has also been successful. That should allow him to pursue a burning ambition to further his track Cycling goals at Rio 2016, with the team pursuit gold perhaps tantalisingly in his sights. With seven Olympic medals already in the Wiggins' collection, one more in Rio would move him past the legendary Sir Chris Hoy and create yet more history.
Australia will have other thoughts no doubt, as they look to deny Team GB and (hopefully) Wiggins their success.