Max Gawn to bring Stanley St Social podcast to the Santos Tour Down Under

Record-breaking AFL All-Australian ruckman and cycling super-fan Max Gawn is bringing his podcast to the Santos Tour Down Under (TDU) in Adelaide in January. 

Gawn headlines the Stanley St Social podcast alongside current WorldTour cyclist Luke Plapp, former professional Alex Clements and Demons teammate Ed Langdon. 

The weekly podcast dissects the world of professional men’s and women’s cycling while deep-diving into the hot topics of the sport with special guests. 

It started in 2017 and has grown to reach cycling fans all over the world through more than 40,000 downloads per month. 

This year Gawn became the first player in history to receive nine All-Australian blazers, surpassing greats of the game including Robert Harvey, Gary Ablett Snr and Gary Ablett Jnr, and finished fourth in the Brownlow Medal. 

And while he’s made a career out of football, cycling remains his passion away from the game. 

Gawn and Langdon were both in Adelaide over the weekend riding some of the TDU’s most iconic routes including Willunga Hill, Norton Summit and around Stirling. 

They will be back in January when the Stanley St Social team appears in the City of Adelaide Tour Village during the TDU and will also engage with fans on Willunga Hill on Race Day 5 when both men’s and women’s pelotons race up within hours of each other. 

The six-stage men’s race will be held from Tuesday, January 19 to Sunday, January 24 and coincide with the three-stage women’s race which will be held from the Friday to the Sunday.  

On the corresponding race days, the women’s peloton will start approximately 90 minutes after the men roll out, covering the same distance and route by utilising the same start and finish locations. 

Gawn, who has played 271 AFL games including captaining Melbourne’s 2021 premiership, said he was already looking forward to coming back to Adelaide to witness history. 

“As an Australian cycling fan, Adelaide in January is where you want to be and it will be great to be in the thick of the action, especially for the first ever edition of men’s and women’s racing on the same day,” he said. 

“It’s been good to be here the past few days checking out some of the stages and the climbs and I can picture what it’s going to be like with thousands of fans lining the roads in January. 

“The Stanley St Social community has grown significantly over the past 12-18 months and with so much racing in Europe, I’m excited to be able to attend a race in-person where we can say hello to some of our listeners. 

“In the Tour Village or on Willunga Hill, it should be a great few days and hopefully I can bring my bike and get out and amongst it at the same time.”