Team Tinkoff-Saxo today revealed the nine-man roster, which will start in the 2014 Tour de France hoping to secure an overall race victory for Alberto Contador.

Team Garmin-Sharp-POC earlier today announced its line-up for the 2014 Tour de France.

Bringing the Tour de France 2014 to life will involve 4500 people. The event involves organisers, teams, media, partners, suppliers and the publicity caravan. Read on for more figures and numbers from this year's Tour de France.

Team BMC Racing will take part in the 2014 Tour de France with the dual ambitions of securing a top result for Tejay van Garderen in the general classification while fighting for stage victories in selected stages.

Peter Sagan and Team Cannondale will use the 2014 Tour de Suisse to further optimize its team ahead of this year's Tour de France.

What messages did the riders have on their top tubes?

The highest ranked German professional road cycling team is heading into 2014 with its sights set high. By combining its existing range of riders, who delivered impressive and continuous results on the roads in 2013, with a number of new signings brought on board to further reinforce the team, Team NetApp–Endura is aiming to take part in the Tour de France for the first time in 2014.

Team Garmin-Sharp today unveiled its new jersey from technical clothing supplier Castelli, along with exciting collaboration news with global conservation organization WWF and the team's official off-bike athletic footwear and clothing sponsor New Balance.

The parcours of the 2014 Tour de France favors climbers. The riders will take on three mountain ranges—the Vosges, the Alps, and the Pyrenees—and five mountaintop finishes. The race will have only one time trial, and its route will include cobbles, which inject unpredictability, particularly for GC riders who might not be used to riding on them.

Tracing a route that limits the strengths of defending champion Chris Froome, the 2014 Tour de France will rattle over bone-jarring cobblestones, pay homage to World War I battlefields, climb unfamiliar mountains in the east of France and have only one time trial.