A GLOBAL audience of millions will be watching this Saturday's Tour de France prologue time trial in London.

The winner will wear the leader's yellow jersey when the Tour races through Kent to Canterbury on Sunday.

British riders Bradley Wiggins and David Millar are hot favourites to win on the 7.9 kilometre course between Whitehall and The Mall, but if either are to take the fabled tunic they will have to see off the challenge of the World Time Trial champion Fabian Cancellara from Switzerland, who won the 2006 Tour prologue.

Alexandre Vinokourov, from Kazakhstan, is a slight favourite to win the three-week race, which finishes in Paris on Sunday July 22.

'Vino' was denied the chance to compete in the 2006 race when so many of his teammates were implicated in the Operation Puerto drug scandal that he was unable to raise a team.

Despite his innocence, Vinokourov was prevented from starting the Tour with his four remaining colleagues by the race officials, though he proved a point in September by winning the Tour of Spain.

One of his most dangerous rivals will be his team mate Andreas Kloden, while the Spanish all-rounder Alessandro Valverde is also expected to figure prominently.