Tony Blair has scored some notable political victories over Jacques Chirac in recent months but none will be celebrated more than his role in London's defeat of Paris to win the 2012 Olympic Games.
Few rivalries are as intense or bitter as Anglo-French showdowns and few prizes have a greater resonance with the public than the Olympic Games. Both political leaders had invested hugely in winning the biggest prize in sport but the spoils went to Mr Blair. Will he now contemplate using the victory to extend his stay in Downing Street?
The temptation may be fuelled by the feelgood factor generated by London's outstanding campaign to win the games and his own crucial role over the last few days in convincing wavering International Olympic Committee delegates that London would be the most fitting venue for the 30th games. The British prime minister outsmarted his French counterpart and will recognise the huge fillip that the games will provide to national morale and the British economy for the next seven years.
Winning the right to stage the Olympics is more hotly-contested than the games themselves. Cities with aspirations to host the five ring circus go through rigorous assessments across financial planning, stadiums, transport, accommodation and their commitment to the Olympic movement. The guarantees on the multi-billion euro budgets provided by the host countries vividly illustrate the value political leaders place on winning the games.
Although Paris boasted a more impressive technical bid in the vital areas of stadium infrastructure and transport, London mounted a more rounded campaign and supported it with the right mix of dynamism and imagination. Most of the IOC members are former Olympians and London's dream of inspiring a new generation of sports stars struck a chord.
That mix of Blair charm and bid imagination may have been pivotal in swaying the IOC to award London the games but will be of little value in putting together the extravaganza itself. Staging a modern Olympics is a staggering project with economists predicting that 150,000 jobs will be created to bring the London dream to reality. But Britain, and London in particular, has experience of staging some of sport's greatest events.
The French, who have now lost three Olympic bids in 20 years, will hardly find any consolation in the short-lived magnanimity shown by London after the city's victory. Losing to their arch rivals is one thing, but being told that they would be only 45 minutes from the principal venues via the Channel tunnel was rubbing salt into the wounds.