2009 Tour de France Breakthrough Bets: Who's Most Likely to Shine?

For this year's Tour de France there are several top riders that are on everyone's minds as contenders for the overall. Likewise, the sprinters too boast a handful of riders that everyone agrees will be men to watch when the race kicks off in Monaco this coming Saturday. But behind these big names there are others that could end the three week stage race as the new heroes, riders that will be mentioned in the same breath as the favorites in future editions of the event. EuroPeloton examines several riders that may vault into superstar status by the end of this year's Tour.

Kim Kirchen has been in the top ten at the Tour de France, won a big time one day classic and even held the yellow jersey at the Tour. Yet the Luxembourgian still is looked over in favor of his countrymen Frank and Andy Schleck, among others. This year Kirchen has been very quiet through the spring owing to his crash at the Amgen Tour of California, so once again he has flown in way under the radar for this year's edition of the Tour. Kirchen is an amazing talent coming into the prime of his career, and 2009 could be his year to ascend toward the top of the sport as a stage race threat. A stage win would be great, but a top five overall would be even better. Expect Kirchen to achieve both by the time the biggest bike race in the world rolls into Paris after a tough three week journey.

Tyler Farrar heads to his first Tour de France as the undisputed sprint leader of the Garmin-Slipstream team. He has beaten Mark Cavendish head to head and his confidence is growing in each race he enters. With Christian Vande Velde's condition a question mark, Garmin management will want to do all they can to support Farrar as he battles against the best sprinters in the world. With even just one stage win, Farrar would legitimize himself as one of the world's top sprinters. And while experience is key at the Tour, so is calmness, and Farrar seems poised and collected ahead of his biggest challenge as a pro cyclist to date.

Luis Leon Sanchez, though only 25 years old, possesses experience far beyond his years. An overall winner at Paris-Nice, the Vuelta a Mallorca, and a stage winner at the Tour de France, Sanchez had planned to support his teammate Alejandro Valverde for the overall classification. But Valverde won't start this year's Tour, so Sanchez has been designated the GC leader for the Caisse d'Epargne team. Sometimes opportunity is all an athlete needs to become a big time star, and Sanchez will have just that in this year's Tour. A capable all-arounder with the tactical prowess to rival the other big guns at the Tour, Sanchez may be on the fast track to stardom providing his form and luck hold out.

Garmin's young stage race hope Dan Martin is prepping for his first Tour in a few days time. Only 21, with little experience and seemingly way out of his league, Martin nevertheless could have a similar performance to Andy Schleck at the 2005 Giro. The Irishman will have very little pressure to perform at the Tour, and with GC leader Vande Velde questionable, Martin may find himself with a chance to go for a stage win at some point in the Tour. Up to this point in the season few have focused on Martin as heavy hitter, but with a stage win in France he won't be ignored going forward.

Silence-Lotto's Matthew Lloyd hasn't notched a true breakthrough win yet in his career, but he has been close and it seems like a matter of time until the Australian breaks through. He'll be at this year's Tour strictly to support Cadel Evans as an overall contender, but should he falter Lloyd may have a chance to fight for a stage win of his own. Too, he may be sent up the road in a break as a tactical move for Lotto. If he manages a stage win, expect his confidence to soar for the future, giving him more chances at victories in the future.

The contenders of the Tour de France will be the first athletes mentioned in the daily headlines, but the above riders, and others, will also make their presence felt. There is no better race than the Tour de France to make a name for one's self, and each and every rider entered will turn themselves inside out to make an impression. It's hard to predict who will emerge as the "new" revelation, but the riders above all are pretty safe bets. Now, all that is left is the racing.