There are some sports that lend themselves to a wide range of betting options and the cream of those is probably the Tour de France. Known as The Tour, it’s the premier cycling race on the calendar, and for riders, it is three grueling weeks, 21 stages, and 3,471km that takes them through the French Alps along narrow winding cobblestone roads and long flat stretches. It tests the riders’ abilities across a number of factors, from sprinting to mountain climbing, all culminating in a race to the finish along the Champs-Élysées in Paris on 24 July.

The Race starts from Verdee today, and bookmakers have already decided that Alberto Contador is the man to beat, making him a short even money favourite in Tour de France betting. Andy Schleck is the second favourite at 9/4 with daylight third, headed by Cadell Evans at 27/1. Punters, while betting on the outright winner is popular, are faced with a smorgasbord of betting options. These options include:

• King of the Mountain
• Points Winner
• 21 Separate Stage Winners
• Winning Team
• General Classification Winner
• Mountain Classification Winner
• Rider Match Bets

And that’s just for starters. You can bet on winning nationalities, who’ll wear the yellow jersey, youngest winner and a wide range of spread bets including winning times, winning margins, and the average speed of the winner.

This year’s race does look to be Contador’s to lose. He is in great form and he is racing for arguably the world’s best cycling team. Evans was considered a strong chance to win last year and while he has performed well this year, seems to have gone off the boil a little. Perhaps he is leaving something for this race.

Andy Schleck always performs well in this race and you can expect him to be in the top five when the race finishes in Paris. Whether he still has the legs for the mountain stages is the big question. Our tips – while it’s still early, we’re sticking with the favourite to win, but we’re having a saver on Evans winning the sprint classification.