Team Sky has announced its nine man squad for the 2014 Tour de France. Chris Froome, the reigning Tour champion, will lead the team with Richie Porte acting as his main support for the race.

As expected, there is no place for Bradley Wiggins. Froome makes quite clear in his recently published autobiography, The Climb, that he does not believe Wiggins is a reliable team player and that he sees Porte as a much more effective super domestique. Wiggins will instead join the British track team at the Commonwealth Games.

The full squad is Chris Froome, Richie Porte, Geraint Thomas, Mikel Nieve, Bernhard Eisel, Vasil Kiryienka, David López, Danny Pate and Xabier Zandio.

Froome is the Evens favourite (bet £10 to make £10 profit) to win the Tour de France while Porte is on offer at a generous looking 66/1 in the event that the Kenyan-born favourite fails to show his form.

Team Sky principal Sir Dave Brailsford said: "Team Sky returns to the Tour de France with the reigning champion and we are looking to win the yellow jersey for the third time in three years and a second consecutive time for Chris Froome. Defending champion Chris Froome is an exceptional talent, a brilliant stage racer, and he'll lead the team.

"We know how hard it is to win this race and that it takes a totally focused and carefully constructed team, with the right blend of riders, to give us the best chance of victory. Each rider has been selected to play a specific role which will involve total sacrifice and commitment to the team's ambition of reaching the Champs Élysées in yellow.

"In tackling the difficult challenge of selecting this team, we have stuck to a performance-first philosophy which has bought us considerable success, firstly at British Cycling and then with Team Sky, for more than a decade. Given the number of talented riders in Team Sky this approach has inevitably lead to some very tough decisions - however it's crucial to remain totally focused on the desired outcome and we're racing to win.

"It has been a golden decade for cycling. Bradley Wiggins lies at the heart of a lot of that success, and although he has not been selected for this race he is still a key member of Team Sky and a great champion.

"The last time the Tour came to Britain it helped sow the seeds for what eventually became Team Sky. Everyone should be immensely proud of how far we've come and we can't wait to ride in front of the UK fans. I believe that this will mark the moment when Britain truly becomes a cycling nation."

Chris Froome, Team Sky's leader and 2013 Tour de France champion, said: "Everyone in the team is hugely excited about the Tour de France starting in the UK and racing in front of home fans as defending champion will be an incredible honour.

"We did a recce of the Yorkshire stages a few weeks ago and the excitement was already starting to build and the support that we have received has been fantastic. I'll never forget the atmosphere on the roads during the London Olympics and to receive similar support at the Tour would be amazing. There's no greater motivation for us than riding in front of our UK fans.

"We have a really strong team going into the race, full of experience and ability, and we've spent a lot of time together this year which is very important. We're ready to get started and can't wait to get to Yorkshire."

It is expected that Wiggins will leave Team Sky at the end of the current season as his options for Grand Tour results are severely limited; it has been rumoured he will sign for Orica GreenEdge, although it is not known whether they would be able to meet his salary expectations.

Speaking about Wiggins' decision to ride at the Commonwealth Games, Shane Sutton said: "I'm very happy to be able to welcome Sir Bradley back to the track team for the Commonwealth Games - his addition will be a real morale boost to the rest of the track squad. The decision of who will ride what event will be made nearer the time."

Team England Chef de Mission Jan Paterson said: "We are delighted that Sir Bradley will be returning to the track for Team England in Glasgow. It's hugely exciting for the Team, the sport and spectators that they'll be able to see one of our finest athletes back in the Velodrome for the first time in a number of years."

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