Team Sky have announced their lineup for the Giro, and this is she:

Mark Cavendish
Bernhard Eisel
Juan Antonio Flecha
Sergio Henao
Peter Kennaugh
Ian Stannard
Ben Swift
Geraint Thomas
Rigoberto Urán

We also know that the first five stages are on Team Sky's favourite terrain: FLAT GROUND

Stage 1 ITT


Stage 2


Stage 3


Stage 4 TTT


Stage 5



As owner of Team Sky, it strikes me that the squad selected is very well suited to each of these first five stages. The guys coming off the track (Thomas, Swift, Kennaugh) will be in perfect shape for the short prologue effort, and combined with the big motors of Flecha, Eisel and Stannard they should perform very well in the TTT. Stages 2 and 3 are pretty much tailor made for Cavendish, barring crosswinds, and even with his meagre climbing abilities he ought to be able to contest the finish of stage 5.

That said, how much success do you think Team Sky will actually manage to wring out of these early opportunities? Cav has developed a habit of messing up the first bunch kick in each GT he enters, so I don't expect him to win all three sprint stages, but he has to be good for at LEAST one. Personally I think Cav will get two of the early sprints and Sky will win at least one of the against-the-clock events.

Where's the question? all five, heck the organisers will even award them a sixth before the sixth as a mark of excellence.

The road furniture will make the Danish stages difficult and dangerous. Anything can happen.

GT stages can be unpredictable so it really is guess work.

Will Sky make a blue train every day for the sprint? If Cav wins the first stage will all the other teams decide to let Sky do all the work to bring back the breaks? That will play into the other teams hands so cant see them winning all 5 and Cav has been off form this year and I did not see anything in Romandie to show he has legs to win every sprint stage.

I am of the wait and see what happens rather than trying to predict. :

I will bet you one Matthew Hayman that Sky will have a better Giro than BMC, who will you put up from your team?

I will put up Greg Van Avermat.    ;D

How are we to decide who has a better Giro?  a neutral adjudicator?

I will put up Greg Van Avermat.    ;D

How are we to decide who has a better Giro?  a neutral adjudicator?

Oooh, good choice! How about... total CQ points from stage wins + classifications?

Damn, I'd filed my nominations for being the arbitrator.

Damn, I'd filed my nominations for being the arbitrator.

Ahem.

Bloody hell, should have used another word. Vocabulary, where's thee missing at the hour of need.

and you doing journalism and all    :

I am pretty pleased with this.  Phil will no doubt be able to use an extra pair of legs helping out at Lombardia ...  ;D

_{As owner of Vacansoleil I'll just keep quiet and lurk in the background.}

 :-[

I voted three, though I suspect it will be more and hope that it will be none.

3

2 of the sprints and one of the TTs seems about right.

gc wise
 uran and henao both in the top 25 and neither in the top 10

I am really curious about Sky's GC attack. I agree that a top 10 seems unlikely but who knows

3, OPQS will send their strongest into a break.

If it comes back it will be Farrar.

I heard reports that there'd be extra second places at the Giro to accommodate Farrar and Goss.

Here's a follow-up question, then:

If Sky win 3 of the first 5 stages and carry pink for a day or two, does that alone constitute a successful Giro for them, even if they do nothing else for the rest of the race besides maybe put one of their South Americans in to the top 10 or 20 on GC?

I think they would be pretty happy with some early success, I can't see Cav finishing the whole tour and I expect one or two of the guys coming off the track to run out of gas after the first week and pull out.

yeah I think Sky would consider that successful.  What else are they hoping for at the Giro?

Actually most teams would consider that successful.    ;D