Isle of Man cyclist Max Walker will make his Tour de France debut this weekend.

The 24-year-old from Douglas will take part in his maiden grand tour when he lines up for EF Education-EasyPost on stage one this Saturday.

This year’s Le Tour will get underway with the Grand Depart in Barcelona during the first two stages – the opener being a team time trial - before travelling across the border into France on stage three and continuing until July 26.

Walker’s selection is reward for another fine season in the professional ranks and comes on the back of a strong showing in the Tour Auvergne - Rhône-Alpes in France earlier this month.

Speaking to his team’s official website, Walker commented: ‘It doesn't really feel real at the moment. I don't think it will till I get there, but it's really exciting. I can't really believe it's happening.

‘I always remember when I was in primary school, probably around 10 years old, rushing back from school to watch the last 20 or 30 kilometres of the Tour at home with my brother and my dad.

‘I think since then I just wanted to do it because I thought it looked so cool, mainly because Cav [Mark Cavendish] was doing it, and it's obviously where we both grew up, so just watching him — I remember shouting at the TV so much on the sprint stages, getting mad if he crashed, then being really happy if he won.

‘Those are the stages I remember most, the sprint stages when he was winning.

‘Hopefully, we'll be doing the same — well, hopefully I can be one of the team-mates helping someone win.

‘I don't really have any personal ambitions. I just want to go there and be the best helper I can for Ben [Healy] and Richie [Carapaz] and the people going for stage wins.

‘The TTT [team time trial] is something we're quite focused on, so it'd be nice to get a good result there. But the rest of the time, my ambition is just to be as helpful as I can for the team leaders.

‘I think the first few stages will be really cool — the crowds will be big, and my family's coming out to watch, so those are the ones I'm most looking forward to at the moment. My family is really excited.’