SOUTH Australia’s Tour Down Under has been elevated to the world stage in a sporting coup.
The major South Australian event has been elevated to ProTour status and will bring more of the world’s top riders to race here.
The announcement in Stuttgart, Germany last night , marked the first time a cycling event outside Europe has been awarded world cycling’s highest status in more than 100 years.
This means the event will attract more of the world’s top teams and riders, many of them contenders in world events such as the Tour de France, which also is part of the ProTour.
China, Russia and the U.S. were also bidding for ProTour status.
Premier Mike Rann said it would result in huge benefits for the state.
From next January, 18 world-class teams will ride in the Tour Down Under, held in January, resulting in an expected 60 per cent increase in overseas and interstate tourists attending the event.
A delighted Mr Rann told The Advertiser the event would bring huge benefits to SA.
He said the touring nature of the event would showcase many of the state’s top locations.
“Never in world cycling history has ProTour status been given to any event outside Europe,” he said. “Every team and every top rider will come here.
“This is unbeatable.
“It also means, very importantly for us, just a quantum leap in terms of worldwide television coverage”.
Mr Rann said the great advantage for cycling over any other sport is that you get continuous coverage worldwide for six days featuring some of the most beautiful scenery and destinations we have to offer.
The State Government will now begin developing a series of associated events to complement the Tour.
“It will become a series of festivals built around the Tour Down Under,” Mr Rann said.
He said the state’s exposure to a worldwide audience would be more valuable than when SA hosted the Formula One motor racing event in the 1980s and early 1990s.
“In terms of coverage of scenic locations, this is unbeatable. Even when we had Formula One, we couldn’t get that kind of coverage.
“There is a massive worldwide following of cycling not only in Europe but in the United States, South America and elsewhere.
“It is the type of publicity money can’t buy.”
Mr Rann and Tourism Minister Jane Lomax-Smith spent more than 12 months preparing SA’s bid.
“We have been heavily lobbying the world council,” Mr Rann said.
“There has been a frenzy of lobbying.
“It is a big thing for the world council to do something totally different.”
Mr Rann said he was very tense ahead of last night’s announcement.
“The thing we were confident about was that we couldn’t have done any more,” he said.
“Jane has been obsessed.”
Dr Lomax-Smith the announcement rewarded SA’s hard work to win the bid.
“Expansion of the series outside of Europe for the first time ever has been a hotly debated topic in the international cycling community for some time,” she said.
“Next year is the 10th anniversary of the Tour Down Under and what better birthday present than an announcement that we have won the right to be the first country outside of Europe ever to host a Pro Tour event.”
Race director Mike Turtur said he was confident the state would be prepared for the event by January.
“The UCI has confidence in our ability to deliver a ProTour event in January next year and we will absolutely make sure that happens,” he said.
Australia is the ninth country to be awarded Pro Tour status.
The race remains without a naming sponsor, but Czech Republic vehicle manufacturer Skoda - the official motor vehicle of the Tour de France - is now expected to parade 50 vehicles during the tour following a recent sponsorship deal.
Source AdelaideNow September 28
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