Points Race

The points race for maillot vert is where the sprinters come into play. Two times runner up Mark Cavendish (HTC-Columbia) is the fastest man in the world over 200m, and will be looking to add several more stages to the 15 he has won since 2009. Changes to the intermediate points will make it harder for 2009 winner Thor Hushovd and team mate Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Cervelo) and 2010 winner Alessandro Petacchi (Lampre-Farnese) to challenge for the prize.

Other leading contenders include:

• Team Sky – Edvard Boasson Hagen and Ben Swift