The first of the season's great cycle races begins on Friday with Britain's Chris Froome looking to complete the set of blue riband trophies, and become the first rider to hold all three at the same time since Eddie Merckx.
ADVERTISEMENTThe Giro d'Italia begins on Friday, the first of the season's holy trinity of great Tours, which then move on to France, and then Spain.
But the Giro has struck out for pastures new, and opens in Israel for the first time.
After a couple of day's racing the whole shebang is crated up and flown back to Italy for the rest of the event.
The riders have been busy familiarising themselves with the street circuit for Friday's time trial opener in Jerusalem.
Chris Froome's participation, faced with doping allegations, has been questioned by some.
"That's certainly not something in coming into this race I'm even thinking about. I'm not going to entertain that idea, because coming from a starting point that I obviously know i've done nothing wrong, there's nothing that says I shouldn't be here racing, so in that sense it's not something I'm going to entertain," the Tour de France and Vuelta holder said at the pre-race press conference.
If Froome were to win here he would hold all three grand tours, a feat only achieved once before, by the legendary Belgian rider Eddie Merckx.