Will Team Sky wear new white kit at Tour de France?

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Cyclingnews has learned that Team Sky is set to wear a special edition white jersey for the 2017 edition of the Tour de France. An official announcement from the team is expected on 31st May, a few days after the Giro d'Italia comes to an end.

Castelli would not confirm the exact design of the jersey to Cyclingnews, but they did confirm that it will feature a 'small detail change'. It is expected that the line and dot design of the standard issue black and blue jersey for the season will remain, with a simple reversal of the black and white colour ways. Team Sky would not comment when contacted by Cyclingnews.

There is a possibility that the minimalist design of the jersey will clash with the Maillot Blanc, which is worn by the best young rider on the general classification. Historically, teams have altered their regular jersey so as not to clash with the leader's jersey at the Tour de France, whilst it seems that this will not deter the British super team. In 2011, the team wore a custom green 'Rainforest Rescue kit' at the Tour de France when Adidas provided apparel. 

ONCE, Mercatone Uno and KAS were all known to alter their kits for the Grand Tour so as not to clash with the yellow overall leader's jersey. More recently, Tinkoff-Saxo swapped out their yellow and blue kit for a grey and fluo camouflage kit in 2015.

Special edition jerseys at the Tour de France have also become precursors for new sponsorship announcements for the following season. The blurred lines of transfer windows, contract negotiations and sponsorships deals begin in earnest during the biggest race on the calendar. Orica-GreenEdge, Giant-Alpecin and Cannondale-Drapac all released new jerseys for the Tour de France last year.