Yates, who spent 13 days in the pink jersey during the 2018 Giro, will lead Australia's Mitchelton-SCOTT during the 21-stage event which spans almost 3,500 kilometres.
The 28-year-old finished eighth at last year's Giro but comes into the event off the back of his Tirreno-Adriatico victory earlier this month.
"Tirreno was a great victory and I’m very proud of what I accomplished there but the big goal has always been the Giro, so I hope I can hold my form from there until the end of the Giro," Yates said, via a Mitchelton-SCOTT press release.
“Since then, I have returned to altitude in Andorra to finish my preparation at home, so that I can hit two birds with one stone - spending some much needed time at home, while still preparing the best way possible to arrive in a great space for the Giro.
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“The Giro is a hard and unpredictable race. You need to be ready at any moment to adapt the strategy to prepare for victory.
"Normally at the Giro the weather is getting better day-by-day as we start in Spring and approach summer, whereas this year will be the complete opposite. I’m expecting some bad weather this year and I’m mentally prepared for that.
“I’m very happy with the team we have assembled. The team is basically our team from Tirreno where we worked extremely well together and that is very important going forward into the Giro, to have the understanding of how each other work together on and off the bike.
Five Australians - Jack Haig, Lucas Hamilton, Michael Hepburn, Damien Howson and Cameron Meyer - are also part of the Mitchelton-SCOTT team for the Giro.
Mitchelton-SCOTT at the 2020 Giro d’Italia (3-25 October):
Edoardo Affini (ITA, 24) – Grand Tour debutant
Edoardo Affini (ITA, 24) – Grand Tour debutant
Brent Bookwalter (USA, 36) – 5th appearance
Jack Haig (AUS, 27) - 2nd appearance
Lucas Hamilton (AUS, 24) – 2nd appearance
Michael Hepburn (AUS, 29) – 5th appearance
Damien Howson (AUS, 28) - 2nd appearance
Cameron Meyer (AUS, 32) – 5th appearance
Simon Yates (GBR, 28) – 3rd appearance
