"I always want to be a star at the Giro," the Briton, who bagged three individual stage wins in this year's race, told Rai television. "There are seven stages for sprinters, why not try winning them all?"

Organizers had already announced that the first three stages would be in the Netherlands, starting in Amsterdam on May 8 with a time trial.

It will be the ninth time the world's second biggest stage race, which celebrated its centenary this year, kicks off outside Italy.

Many of the grueling mountain stages have been saved for the second half of the race before the climax in Verona on May 30 with an individual time trial finishing at the city's Roman arena.

The 15th stage from Mestre to Mt. Zoncolan and the penultimate stage between Bormio and Ponte di Legno Tonale look especially tough.

The Giro will not stop in Milan after a farcical stage in the city this year, when the times did not count for the general classification after the riders cruised for most of it in protest at the safety of the course.

REAL CONTENDERS

After the first three stages, the peloton will fly to Piedmont for a team time trial between Savigliano and Cuneo.

The race then heads southwards with the first uphill finish coming in the eighth stage from Chianciano Terme to Mt. Terminillo in Lazio, which is expected to show who the real contenders are.

Three days later the riders will take on the longest stage, a 256-kilometer slog from Lucera to L'Aquila in Abruzzo, which is still recovering from the earthquake that hit the region in April.

"The race is paying a visit to this city still wounded by the earthquake, something which Italian President Giorgio Napolitano requested," said Carlo Verdelli, the editor of La Gazzetta dello Sport, whose parent company runs the Giro.

2010 Giro d'Italia route / map .

2010 Giro d'Italia stages

Stage 1 - Saturday, May 8, Amsterdam TT, 8.4km
Stage 2 - Sunday, May 9, Amsterdam - Utrecht, 209km
Stage 3 - Monday, May 10, Amsterdam - Middelburg, 209km
Rest day, Tuesday, May 11, Savigliano
Stage 4 - Wednesday, May 12, Savigliano - Cuneo TTT, 32.5km
Stage 5 - Thursday, May 13, Novara - Novi Ligure, 168km
Stage 6 - Friday, May 14, Fidenza - Marina di Carrara, 166km
Stage 7 - Saturday, May 15, Carrara - Montalcino, 215km
Stage 8 - Sunday, May 16, Chianciano - Monte Terminillo, 189km
Stage 9 - Monday, May 17, Frosinone - Cava de' Tirreni, 188km
Stage 10 - Tuesday, May 18, Avellino - Bitonto, 220km
Stage 11 - Wednesday, May 19, Lucera - L'Aquila, 256km
Stage 12 - Thursday, May 20, Città Sant'Angelo - Porto Recanati, 191km
Stage 13 - Friday, May 21, Porto Recanati - Cesenatico, 222km
Stage 14 - Saturday, May 22, Ferrara - Asolo (Monte Grappa), 201km
Stage 15 - Sunday, May 23, Mestre - Zoncolan, 218km
Rest day, Monday, May 24, Friuli
Stage 16 - Tuesday, May 25, San Vigilio di Marebbe - Plan de Corones TT, 12.9km
Stage 17 - Wednesdday, May 26, Brunico - Pejo Terme, 173km
Stage 18 - Thursday, May 27, Levico Terme - Brescia, 151km
Stage 19 - Friday, May 28, Brescia - Aprica, 195km
Stage 20 - Saturday, May 29, Bormio - Passo del Tonale, 178km
Stage 21 - Sunday, May 30, Verona - Verona TT, 15.3km