Marcel Kittel has confirmed that he will line up in this year's Giro d'Italia. With the German also set to do the Tour de France, this will be the first year with two grand tours for him.

Earlier this year Marcel Kittel said that it was now time for him to try to do two grand tours in a single season and that he played with the idea of doing the Giro d'Italia before lining up at the Tour de France. At that time, he didn't confirm his participation but now there is no longer any doubt that the German will do the Italian grand tour.

At a press conference organzied by the organizers of the German one-day race, Rund um den Finanzplatz, Giant-Shimano coach Rudi Kemna was asked whether he planned to include Kittel on his roster. Kemna revealed that the team planned to line up Kittel at the Giro and that he would do the Tour de Romandie in preparation, ruling out a start in his home race.

It will be Kittel's first participation in the Giro. He made his grand tour debut in the 2011 Vuelta where he won a stage before abandoning the race. Illness forces him out of his first Tour de France one year later while he finally managed to complete a three-week race when he won four stages in last year's edition of La Grande Boucle.

In Italy, he is likely to be up against Mark Cavendish. The Brit still hasn't confirmed his participation as his major goal is the Tour de France and he has said that he will only make a very late decision.

Anotherr big sprinter André Greipel had originally planned to do the race but will skip it as it clashes with other important events on the Lotto Belisol schedule, most notably the Tour of Belgium.

With Kittel doing the Giro and the Tour, it is likely that the team's other major sprinter John Degenkolb will do the Tour-Vuelta double.