Tour de France: Adam and Simon Yates picked by Orica-GreenEdge
Last Updated: 30/06/15 10:34am
Adam and Simon Yates have been included in the Orica-GreenEdge team for the Tour de France, which starts on Saturday in Utrecht.
Adam will be riding in his first Tour while Simon made it to the final week in the 2014 edition before being pulled out in advance of three mountain stages in the Pyrenees.
Both riders have been tasked with being competitive in the mountains and going for stage victories, with the Australian team's sporting director Matt White feeling it is too early to think of the 22-year-olds as general classification contenders.
"It would be pretty irresponsible for us to put pressure on 22-year-olds, as second year pros, to ride general classification," White told the Sydney Morning Herald.
"For both of them, it's the first Tour de France they are aiming on finishing and so the plan is to gain more experience at the highest level in our sport.
"What they have proven this year is that they have the ability to be very competitive on a lot of varied terrains and against the best riders in the world.
"We are aiming to win a stage with them. If they can hunt out the right move, then on any given day they certainly have the ability to win."
Pieter Weening will provide the Yates brothers with back-up in the mountains and the rest of the team is designed to attack on flat and medium mountain legs, with Michael Matthews, Simon Gerrans and Michael Albasini all suited to stages early in the race.
Luke Durbridge, Daryl Impey and Svein Tuft complete their nine-man line-up.
