The major reason for his position was his impressive, if a little unexpected, fifth place in the Tour de France.

The 28-year-old was among the silent threats of the Tour, keeping within contention without ever really troubling Lance Armstrong's bid for a hat-trick of victories.

He has remained steadily in or around the top 20 of the world rankings since then.

This season he looks a strong bet for a podium place after improving still further in the mountains and the time trials.

Prior to last year's Tour he had starred in its Spanish equivalent, La Vuelta, and at 28 he could be just about to hit his peak.