Pogačar became the youngest winner of the race since 1904 when he triumphed in September, when the race was held later the usual due to the COVID-19 enforced postponement.

The Team UAE Emirates rider had snatched the lead from Roglič in a dramatic individual time trial on the penultimate stage to become the first Slovenian cyclist to secure the title.

Pogačar has enjoyed a successful 2021 season to date, with the 22-year-old earning overall victories at the UAE Tour, Tirreno-Adriatico and the Tour of Slovenia.

Roglič will expect to contend for the general classification again, with the two-time Vuelta a España winner set to be supported by his Jumbo-Visma squad.

Ineos Grenadiers arguably can boost the strongest squad in the race.

Their challenge is likely to be built around 2018 Tour de France champion Geraint Thomas, with his team-mates including Ecuador’s Richard Carapaz and Britain’s Tao Geoghegan Hart, the winners of the 2019 and 2020 Giro d’Italia, respectively.

Richie Porte will form a key part of the team, with the Australian finishing third at last year’s race and having recently triumphed at the Critérium du Dauphiné.

Colombia’s Miguel Angel Lopez and Canada’s Michael Woods are set to lead the Movistar and Israel Start-Up Nation challenge in the general classification.

Slovakia’s Peter Sagan and Dutch star Mathieu van der Poel are among the contenders for the green points jersey.

Ireland’s Sam Bennett won the jersey last year with the Deceuninck–Quick-Step rider triumphing on two stages.

Bennett is absent from this year’s race after failing to recover from a knee injury.

Mark Cavendish has been selected in Bennett’s place in one of the more intriguing stories heading into this year’s race.

Cavendish has been absent from the race since 2018, with the 36-year-old having struggled since suffering from the Epstein-Barr virus.

His career appeared to have been coming to an end last year, but a surprise contract at Deceuninck–Quick-Step has led to a resurgence.

Cavendish won four stages at the Tour of Turkey in April and earned a victory at the recent Tour of Belgium.

He has won 30 stages of the Tour de France during his career, but has played down the possibility of targeting Eddy Merckx record of 34.

Deceuninck–Quick-Step will be led at the race by French star Julian Alaphilippe, the reigning world champion.

Australia’s Caleb Ewan is among the leading sprinters competing at the three-week race.

The Grand Tour will begin tomorrow in Brest, which replaced Copenhagen as host for the Grand Depart because of clash with Euro 2020 matches.

This year’s race is taking place earlier than usual to avoid a clash with the rearranged Olympic Games in Tokyo, which are due to begin on July 23. 

The race will conclude on July 18 in Paris.

Tomorrow will also see La Course by Le Tour de France held, with the eighth edition potentially the last after the announcement of an eight-stage women’s Tour de France from 2022.

The race will take place over 108 kilometres between Brest and Landerneau, with riders set to climb the Fosse aux Loups hill four times.

Britain’s Lizzie Deignan and The Netherlands’ Marianne Vos will be among the contenders for victory.

Deignan won last year’s event, while Vos triumphed in 2014 and 2019.

Double world champion Anna van der Breggen will be among the starters, but fellow Dutch rider Annemiek van Vleuten has opted to prioritise preparations for Tokyo 2020.