Twin brothers Adam and Simon Yates will compete together in the Tour de France, it has been announced. The siblings, 22, from Bury, are preparing for the prestigious race as part of a nine man squad for Australian team Orica-GreenEdge. According to Skysports, Simon explained what his goal on this 2015 edition.

"I will start my second Tour de France and although the experience won't be a new one, it's a special feeling to be back at the sport's most prestigious race", he told. "It has been the main target for my whole year and I have pretty much always known I would be taking part - barring injuries, of course - but to get to this point in good form and health is nevertheless both a relief and hugely exciting. Last year's race was very much about learning, but this year I go into it with loftier ambitions thanks to a combination of greater maturity and the confidence I have gained from some strong results so far this season."

Simon, recent winner of the white young rider’s jersey at the Criterium du Dauphine, is in just their second year as professionals. The Yates brothers have shown huge potential in stage races but Orica-GreenEdge has played down any idea of them targeting the overall classification at such a young age. "I won’t be challenging for the top five at the Tour, but I will be hunting for stage wins. That’s the big goal", the Orica-GreenEDGE rider added. "Perhaps if the first week of the Tour was not quite so challenging I could think about going for something like a top 10 or 15 overall, but the truth is that those first nine stages are going to be bedlam and I’m probably going to lose a lot of time both on the cobbled fourth stage and the days that are likely to be hit with crosswinds."

"The idea is to ride at my absolute maximum on one given day, then recover at the back of the peloton for a few days, and then go full gas again. If I was challenging for the polka dot jersey, I would have to be on top form every single day, which would almost be the same as going for the general classification. However the race pans out for me personally, I’m confident it’s going to be a great spectacle for the fans. And having ridden up close with pretty much all of the main favourites except Contador over the last couple of months, I’m putting my money on Froome for the win."

"He just looked so strong in the mountains at the Dauphine and I think it would take an almighty effort for someone to beat him. I expect Contador to be his main opposition, with Nairo Quintana also pushing hard. I’m a fan as much as a rider, so I’m really eager to see how it pans out."