Saturday's opening stage of the Tour de France in Nice (open in new tab) was designed for sprinters.

Sam Bennett (open in new tab) is the leading contender to win the first stage, along with Caleb Ewan, Elia Viviani, six-time green jersey winner Peter Sagan, and newly crowned European champion Giacomo Nizzolo All of them have won the first stage and Mayo Giorgio. All will be looking for a stage win and the maillot jaune.

Ewan and Viviani won a stage at last year's Tour de France, but Bennett is arguably under the most pressure as the sprinter in the Dečuninck-Quick Step (open in new tab). Tom Boonen, Mark Cavendish, Marcel Kittel, Fernando Gaviria, and Elia Viviani have all won Tour de France stages with the Belgian team in the past, and team manager Patrick Lefevere hopes their latest sprint contract will allow them dynasty.

"I don't want to be the first sprinter in Quick-Step history not to win the Tour. That's the pressure," Bennett admitted when Detuning Quick-Step confirmed Julian Alaphilippe's race plan of aiming for a stage win rather than an overall win.

Bennett, the Irish national champion, has won three Giro d'Italia and two Vuelta a Vuelta. He competed in the Tour de France in 2015 and 2016 with the new Bora-Hansgrohe team, but was plagued by injury and illness and failed to make an impact.

"When I competed in other Grand Tours, I was more relaxed.

"Somehow here I feel like my whole career has been a buildup to this moment and this opportunity.

"When I look back on those years (2015 and 2016), I have to admit that I wasn't unlucky and didn't win a stage. I could have sprinted up from fifth to tenth place. Today I am a much better rider. I have to be that way this year."

Bennett is often self-doubting and reserved out of the saddle, but he is competitive and hungry for success. He is trying to turn the pressure to perform over the next three weeks into positive motivation.

"A stage win here would mean a lot. It would calm me down as a rider and give me more confidence."

"I think you have to accept that there is pressure. I think you have to accept that there is pressure because that means something really meaningful to you."

Bennett lives in Monaco, down the coast from Nice, so he is familiar with the roads of the early stages: the 156-km first stage will take three laps through the countryside of the Var Valley north of Nice before the expected sprint on the Promenade des Anglais.

There are three 5.1% Côte de Limiez climbs, the third starting after 97 km. The last 30km will be flat, giving the sprinter teams time and road to wipe out the breakaway group.

The only wild card is the late summer weather on the Côte d'Azur. Thunderstorms are expected on Saturday. It could wreak havoc on the climbs and the battle for position before the sprint on the Promenade des Anglais, or it could come after the finish.

Bennett can count on the full support of the Deceuninck-QuickStep team, which features the world's top lead-out train, including last runner Michal Molkov. While that is reassuring for the Irish players, it does not temper their expectations.

"The first day could be a sprint, but at the same time it could be a really hard day. You need to keep an open mind and survive as long as possible," he warned.

Whoever wins in Nice on Saturday is unlikely to stay in yellow for more than 24 hours. This is because Sunday's hilly stage around Nice includes a 4,000-meter climb, ending with the legendary Paris-Nice climb, the Col d'Eze, and a fast descent to the finish.

Bennett will get his chance on Saturday, and then Julien Alaphilippe will take over. The Frenchman won two stages last year and wore the yellow jersey for two weeks before finishing fifth overall. He is not in the same form this year, but he does not feel the same pressure or expectations as Bennett.

"He's a guy who always comes out on the bottom and then comes out on fire," Bennett said of Alaphilippe.

"But when it comes to someone's chances, he always goes all-in. I wouldn't be surprised if he gets a yellow. It would be very hard for him to repeat what he did last year, but anything is possible with him."