Team Picnic PostNL

The first Grand Tour of the year is here! A start on Albanian soil will then see the peloton tackle snow-capped mountain passes, sinuous descents, fast sprint finishes and all-out time trials.

A new race on the calendar, a few short climbs could be utilised to distance the sprinters, but the open and exposed roads throughout the day could also play havoc if the wind blows.

One of cycling's quirks, we're all set for the five days of racing at the "4 Jours de Dunkerque" - a race where we can find plenty of short and punchy hills and fast finishes during the week.

Although there is no mountain finish, plenty of punchy Basque climbs are located throughout the three stages so we can expect lots of attacking from those who are at home as the road pitches up.

With a hilly and punchy parcours through the region surrounding Cologne, we could once again be in for a selective and exciting day of action, where the team return as defending champions.