Cycling-Froome confirms he will race 2018 Giro d'Italia

Froome, winner of this year's Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana, will tackle the race for the first time since 2010.

Should he win Froome would become only the third rider in history to hold all three Grand Tour titles at the same time.

"It's a unique situation for me, having won the Tour and Vuelta and now having the opportunity to go to the Giro and attempt to win a third consecutive Grand Tour," Froome said in a statement issued by Team Sky.

"It's really exciting to be able to take on a new challenge, to do something that perhaps people wouldn't expect and to mix it up. It's a whole new motivation for me to see if I can pull off something special next year."

The race begins in Israel on May 4. (Reporting by Martyn Herman; editing by Ken Ferris)