Corbin Strong has already made a name for himself in track cycling but on Sunday he'll look to make history in the Tour de France.
The 2022 Commonwealth Games Scratch Race champion makes his Grand Tour debut this weekend for Israel Premier Tech.
"It's always been the dream. It's like every kid growing up wanting to be an All Black, that's how it felt for me," Strong said.
"I don't know if I ever thought it was a realistic goal. It's pretty surreal."
Strong's team hope his track cycling background could be their secret weapon and deliver New Zealand's first ever stage win.
"Winning a stage is a pretty ambitious goal but I'm going to try," he said.
"The team is going there as an optimistic team and going to take our opportunities going for stage wins. Last year we won two stages.
"If I'm feeling good we should get plenty of opportunities."
Strong's sprinting prowess could be a boost for his team against his opponents' weary tired legs in the final metres of a stage.
Just a few weeks ago he held the green sprinters jersey for two stages in the Route d'Occitanie race in southern France, in the end pipped by rival Marijn van den Berg.
But the 23-year-old admits he's had to recapture his sprinting identity cultivated from his time on the track.
Strong says in his transition to the road, he focused too much on endurance.
"It is very different and is something I struggled with a lot last year. When I started focusing on the road I said to myself I need to be an ultra endurance athlete and got really really fit.
"But I went too far away from what's been successful for me in the past which is being fast twitch and explosive," the Commonwealth Games gold medallist said.
"Twelve months ago I managed to get the balance right with getting fit and being able to ride over long distances but also keeping in touch with what I'm good at which is short, sharp stuff. Sprinting at the end of a day."
Dion Smith, riding for Intermarché–Circus–Wanty, is the other New Zealander competing this year.
The Tour de France gets underway late on Saturday night in Bilbao, Spain.
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