Australian sprint star Caleb Ewan has set his sights on a feat achieved by only one rider in the past 60 years as he enters his third season with Belgian outfit Lotto Soudal.

The 26-year-old has already claimed stage victories at each of cycling's three grand tours, including two at last year's Tour de France.

Now he wants to do it in one season and match the achievements of Miguel Poblet (1956), Pierino Baffi (1958), and Alessandro Petacchi (2003).

"My big goal for 2021 is to win stages in all three grand tours in one year," Ewan told reporters at the weekend.

"There haven't been too many people who've done it in the history of cycling, so that's my big goal.

"Sometimes (riding all three grand tours) seems like a good idea at the beginning of the season, but after the Tour, the thought of riding the bike again can be a bit daunting.

"If I can get through the Giro and the Tour with wins, then I will seriously consider doing the Vuelta."

Ewan has already had five stage victories at the Tour de France, three at the Giro d'Italia and one at the Vuelta a Espana.

Another of his targets, in a year where the Tokyo Olympics course does not suit his racing style, is the Tour's green jersey.

It hasn't been the major focus for Ewan in his two previous Tour appearances, yet he was second behind Peter Sagan when he won three stages on debut in 2019 and finished sixth last year.

There will be up to eight sprint stages on this year's Tour route, which appeals to the Sydney product.

"There are a lot of sprints in this year's Tour, and it is something that I will think about," Ewan said.

"I was waiting for a Tour with a lot of sprints when I won't have to chase the intermediate sprints, and I can pick up points in the final sprints."

Ewan claimed seven of Lotto Soudal's dozen stage wins in a massive 2020 campaign on a personal front and will rejoin his teammates in Spain for a training camp this month.

He won't be racing in his regular season opener, the Tour Down Under, which was cancelled because of insurmountable hurdles in bringing international teams to Adelaide during the global coronavirus pandemic.

The World Tour race has been replaced by a four-stage Festival of Cycling, to run from January 21-24.