Sylvain Calzati's greatest moment as a professional cyclist came in July 2006, when he claimed an emotional victory on stage eight of the Tour de France. For a Frenchman, of course, there can be no greater glory - especially as his win came on the same day that France took on Italy in the football World Cup final.

There was a small complication, though. Calzati explained afterwards that - as his surname suggests - his parents are Italian. Not only that, but he admitted he would be supporting Italy in the final - which they duly won.

Nevertheless, his success, after escaping from a six-man breakaway, 19 miles from the stage finish in Lorient, captured the imagination of all Tour followers. Those final miles were painful, with the wind blowing off the Atlantic and appearing to work against Calzati.

Yet he held off his erstwhile breakaway companions, and the peloton, and had enough time to reach into his pocket and produce a photograph of his wife and baby daughter, waving it at the cameras as he crossed the line.

With Team Sky, Calzati will be hoping for more successes, especially at the Tour de France. "This team is fabulous, exceptional, innovative and hyper professional," he said at the first get-together in Manchester. He admitted he had been to Britain before - on a school exchange as a 15-year old. And he rode the Tour de France when it came to London in 2007. "But I have never been to Manchester," he admitted.

For 2010 Calzati's targets are all French races. "Paris-Nice, the Dauphine-Libere and Tour de France - they are my goals," he says. "But, before the Tour, I have to prove I should be in the team. I am excited. I think everyone will have an opportunity to express themselves over the course of the season."