Cycling: Kiwi George Bennett chasing historic finish at the Giro d'Italia

While top Kiwi road cyclist George Bennett's hoping to fly "under the radar" in the opening stages of the Giro d'Italia, there's no doubt he's well and truly on the map ahead of the first Grand Tour of the year.

The 28-year-old kickstarts his campaign in the time-trial on Friday (NZ time) as the face of the LottoNL-Jumbo team.

The Nelson man's been building to this moment for a while - his role as the number one rider coming off the back of his breakthrough win in the Tour of California in 2017, a fruitful Tour de France and a series of three top ten finishes in World Tour races.

It's the first time he's led his Dutch outfit into a Grand Tour, and the added responsibility brings its own challenges ahead of the gruelling three-week cycle.

"This year I've got a fully lined out team. It's definitely a lot more high-end, high pressure, high stakes kind of thing," he told Newshub.

"If you look into it, it's a lot bigger from that point of view, but I'm trying to keep it as normal as I can and just going along like any other day."

Cycling: Kiwi George Bennett chasing historic finish at the Giro d'Italia
Photo credit: Getty Images

And there's no doubt things are different this time.

Bennett's looming as a genuine Top 10 contender in the general classification, with several cycling publications worldwide mentioning his name in the build-up. He's had a typically hectic schedule since leaving New Zealand earlier this year, and there's been no shortage of dramatic moments either.

Just two weeks ago, an 85-year old priest rammed into him with his car while he was out taking a look at the time-trial course - the collision catapulting Bennett through the air where he took the roof rack of a Fiat Panda off with his knees.

The accident shook him up, but he's confident it won't affect him in Italy.

"I think I'm pretty much through the worst of it; there's nothing that holds me back at all. I'm still a bit sore in a few places, but nothing at all that will slow me down on the bike."

Bizarrely, the Giro d'Italia starts in Jerusalem, with the opening three stages in Israel. It's the first time Bennett's ventured into the country, and the local Kosher laws have meant they've had to change some of their regular habits.

"With our meals, we're not allowed to have dairy products and meat products in the same meal.

So if we wanted cereal with milk in it, we have to eat that, and then we have to go somewhere else and have an omelette with ham in it for example."

The dietary rules have also altered where they eat as a team - they're not allowed to have a dedicated food room in the hotel like they usually do.

Cycling: Kiwi George Bennett chasing historic finish at the Giro d'Italia
Photo credit: Getty Images

It's added another layer to the complexity of the Giro - one that's shaping up to be a bulked up, supercharged version of the race.

"It's not your standard Giro, if you look at the start list, I don't know what's happened. Maybe it's because they put cobbles in the Tour de France...however it's worked out, it's converged that pretty much everyone's going to the Giro this year."

That list includes the likes of Team Sky's Chris Froome, defending champion Tom Dumoulin, and powerhouses such as Esteban Chaves and Fabio Aru.

It makes it even more difficult to predict the outcome of the race, although Bennett says he'll be 'disappointed with anything less than a top ten finish.'

His game plan is about racing smart and making the most of his opportunities. He's keen to get off to a steady start in the peloton.

"If you don't hear about me in the first ten days then it's probably going pretty ok.

I haven't got any targets in the first week, the idea for me is just to be as conservative as I can in the first ten days and then take as much time as I can in the last ten days.

"It's about getting through those first few stages in a good way, not sick, not having crashed, not having lost stupid time. And then when we hit the big mountains and the last time-trial, it's game on."

Bennett has a very realistic chance of creating New Zealand cycling history. No one has ever won an individual stage in the Giro, while the highest finish by a Kiwi in a Grand Tour is tenth - a mark he set at the Vuelta a Espana in 2016.

His ascension into the elite company of the cycling world will be complete with a strong showing in Italy, while it's a big chance to display his mettle as the leader of a team in the global spotlight.

Bennett's done his time in the pack, and instead of following the bunch, he's now creating his own route to success.

Newshub.