The 2019 Tour de France begins its three-week journey through France on Saturday, and this year's version of the race is the most wide open in years. Oddsmakers list 22-year-old Colombian climbing sensation Egan Bernal as the 2-1 favorite. Defending champion Geraint Thomas is 11-4, while Jakob Fuglsang is 11-2.

With such a wide open edition of the Tour set to take place, you'll want to read how SportsLine staff writer Gene Menez breaks down the race before making any 2019 Tour de France picks of your own.

A former reporter and associate editor for Sports Illustrated, where he covered an array of sports for almost 14 years, Menez has been obsessed with the Tour de France for more than three decades. He has been following the event since the mid-1980s when John Tesh was hosting CBS' coverage.

Menez has analyzed the Tour de France route and contenders and has picked his top three finishers for the yellow jersey, as well as the winners of the green jersey (for best sprinter), polka dot jersey (best climber) and white jersey (best young rider). 

One shocker: We can tell you Menez is fading Thomas, the defending champion and one of the top Vegas favorites. In fact, Menez says Thomas doesn't even finish on the podium.

Instead, Menez's pick to win the Tour de France is a rider who has never won a grand tour, much less the Tour de France. Menez thinks this rider will excel in the mountain stages of the third week and find himself atop the podium in Paris on July 28. You ABSOLUTELY need to see who it is before you lock in any picks.

So which rider wins the Tour de France? Who finishes on the podium? And who captures the green, polka dot and white jerseys? ... Join SportsLine now to see which riders to be all over, all from the expert who has been following the Tour de France since the mid-1980s!