Roll call of TDU champions for Legends’ Night
The Legends' Night Dinner at the Santos Tour Down Under will feature a who’s who of previous winners, honoured as legends of Australia’s Greatest Cycling Race.
Only two previous winners – Mikel Astarloza and Cameron Meyer – won’t be in attendance.
The dozen other men to have won ochre or yellow will be honoured at the night, with names including inaugural winner Stuart O’Grady, title record-holder Simon Gerrans and fellow multiple winner André Greipel.
Here’s the roll call of winners…
Stuart O’Grady won the inaugural Tour Down Under with Crédit Agricole and then repeated the achievement in 2001 – two yellow jerseys in three years ain’t bad.
Ag2R’s Gilles Maignan was the second man to win the yellow in 2000, in what was a successful year for the French in Adelaide. Big Mat’s Guillame Auger claimed the points classification, while Francaise des Jeux’s Sandy Casar was King of the Mount. Ag2R also claimed teams honours.
Mick Rogers became the third man to win the Tour, and the second Aussie, in 2002 riding for the Australian Institute of Sport.
Astarloza claimed honours in 2003 for Ag2R’s second win.
Popular Dutchman-turned-Aussie Pat Jonker claimed his general classification triumph in 2004 riding for UniSA before saddling the bike after retirement.
Luis Leon Sanchez Gil prevailed in a strong 2005 campaign both individually and for his Liberty Seguros Team. He claimed honours in the young rider classification and the Spanish squad was also the top-ranked team at the end of proceedings.
Simon Gerrans claimed his first of four general classifications in 2006 (later winning in 2012, 2014 and 2016). The Aussie holds the current record for the most victories in the Tour Down Under.
Swiss rider Martin Elmiger claimed Ag2R’s third general classification in 2007 with a strong performance in Adelaide.
André Greipel took out his first of two ochre jerseys in 2008, with the big-bodied sprinter dominating for the HighRoad team under its HTC-Columbia guise in 2010 as well. He returns to race in this year’s Santos Tour Down Under with Lotto Soudal.
Allan Davis sealed both general and points classification victories in 2009 with a strong win for Team Quickstep.
Cam Meyer became the sixth Aussie to win on home soil in 2011 with both the ochre and best young riders’ jerseys in his cabinet at the end of stage six.
Tom-Jelte Slagter continued the theme of youth controlling ochre in 2013 by also taking out the young rider classification as well as taking overall victory.
And local rider Rohan Dennis kick-started a breakout year in pro cycling with the GC and young rider’s titles to his name at the Tour Down Under in 2015. He later won the opening stage of that year’s Tour de France.
Richie Porte is the reigning Santos Tour Down Under champion, and will contest this year’s event as lead rider for BMC Racing Team alongside fellow winners Gerrans and Dennis.
