The 21.7 kilometer team time trial is followed by a stage in Belfast and a stage in Dublin, before the riders and staff will use Monday's rest day for the transfer to Italy, where two individual time trials, eight sprinter stages and a total of nine stages with uphill finishes await the riders and staff - and not least the many loyal cycling fans who will watch the Giro d'Italia live on the roads of Italy.

Team Tinkoff-Saxo announced it will contest this year's Giro d'Italia with a two-captain approach as it has appointed both Rafal Majka and Nicolas Roche as team captains in the race.

"Our main goal is to make a general classification result  with either Rafa (Rafal Majka) or Nico (Nicolas Roche)," Team Saxo-Tinkoff sports director Lars Michaelsen explained. "Our secondary goal is to win a stage in case an opportunity arises. All through the race, we will focus on supporting our leaders in order to make a top five general classification result."

One of Tinkoff-Saxo's two captains, Nicolas Roche, will start the race on Irish home soil.

Commenting on his preparations and expectations for this year's Giro, Roche told Roadcycling.com "I have been through a very hard altitude training camp with the team for the Giro and we just finished Tour de Romandie to brush off our shape."

"I feel ready and naturally, I’m extremely motivated to do the Giro on home soil. The home ground launch is the bonus to me. I can’t wait to get a feel of the buzz that the Giro has created in Ireland over the last few months. It’s a huge deal for the Irish fans, Irish cycling and it’s a huge deal for me," Roche added.

The Giro d'Italia marks the return to racing for Michael Rogers, who was previously suspended pending a doping investigation pertaining to possible clenbuterol use.

"With Michael (Rogers) back in the group, we have a strong and experienced road captain, which is crucial during both the first chaotic stages as well as in the long run to stay focused. Going into the third week of the race, we will face five very important mountain stages, where the general classification will be battled out and we’ll see who has more fuel left in the tank," said Michaelsen.

Team Tinkoff-Saxo roster for Giro d'Italia 2014:
Nicolas Roche, Rafal Majka, Michael Rogers, Chris Anker Sørensen, Pawel Poljanski, Evgeny Petrov, Ivan Rovny, Jay McCarthy, and Christopher Juul-Jensen.

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