Criterium du Dauphine a tour de force

A host of high-class Australians will tackle the Criterium du Dauphine from Sunday in a crucial preview to next month's Tour de France.

OVERSHADOWED by Alberto Contador and Chris Froome, a host of high-class Australians will tackle the Criterium du Dauphine from Sunday in a crucial preview to next month's Tour de France.

Regarded as the most important of all the Tour preludes, the Dauphine takes in the Alpe d'Huez, the feared alpine climb which will also be tackled twice on the same day during the 100th Tour de France.

Tasmanian's Richie Porte and Canberra's Michael Rogers, integral to Bradley Wiggins's success in both the Dauphine and Tour last season, will ride for rival teams this season.

Porte has remained with Team Sky and will support Froome, while triple world champion Rogers has transferred to Team Saxo-Tinkoff to act as Contador's road captain.

This season, Porte has showcased undoubted general classification potential with victory in the Paris-Nice in March, prompting Sky to extend his contract by two years.

And Rogers underlined his class with an excellent second in the Tour of California.

Porte and Rogers will be joined on the eight-stage Dauphine trek over 1052km by the Orica GreenEDGE team made up of Simon Clarke, Simon Gerrans, Wesley Sulzberger, Michael Matthews, Mitchell Docker and Travis Meyer.

The impressive David Tanner (Blanco Pro Cycling), Rohan Dennis (Garmin-Sharp) and Will Clarke (Argos-Shimano) will also test their legs.

Cadel Evans (BMC) will bypass the Dauphine after his fine third in the Giro d'Italia.

With most Tour de France teams yet to finalise selection, performance in this season's Dauphine will be critical.

Starting in Champery, just across the French border in Switzerland, the Dauphine features a 32.5km individual time trial, a summit finish in the French Alps and the climb to Alpe d'Huez on stage seven.

Froome is the race favourite, having only been beaten in the Tirreno-Adriatico in Italy this season.