In-form Dan Martin determined to grasp Tour de France opportunity

The Tour de France gets underway tomorrow in the Normandy commune of Mont Sant Michel and among the 189 riders taking part are two Irishmen, Sam Bennett and Dan Martin.

Martin will spearhead his Etixx-QuickStep team’s assault on the yellow jersey while Bennett’s focus will be on trying to win one of the 21 stages over the three weeks for Bora-Argon 18.

But it’s not all that simple, because with a lumpy course favoured to the bantamweight climbers like Martin, chances of a maiden victory for Bennett are greatly reduced.