Climbs to toughen Tour Down Under

DEFENDING champion Cameron Meyer will know he's in a race of attrition when he tackles the 14th edition of the Santos Tour Down Under in January.

Cameron Meyer

DEFENDING champion Cameron Meyer will know he's in a race of attrition when he tackles the 14th edition of the Santos Tour Down Under in January.

Meyer, the Garmin-Cervelo rider and one of Australia's big hopes at the London Olympics on the track next year, along with a host of the world's best road warriors face a tough week of racing through the Clare Valley, Adelaide Hills, Fleurieu Peninsula and the Barossa before a gruelling finish in the Queen Stage to the top of Old Willunga Hill in McLaren Vale on the second last day.

The 2012 Santos Tour Down Under race routes were unveiled today, with Prospect, just outside of the Adelaide CBD and Lobethal in the Adelaide Hills, hosting race starts for the first time.

The Tour Down Under, the now traditional race start of a new season, will be held from January 15-22.
The UCI World Tour event will also return to the seaside town of Victor Harbor, which it last visited in 2009 and the wine region of the Clare Valley, which hosted a stage start for the first time in 2010.

Race Director, Mike Turtur, who leaves tomorrow for a crucial UCI executive meeting in Switzerland tomorrow with the future of Alberto Contador on the agenda, sees the race as “shaping up to be one of the most challenging and exciting events in the history of the race.

“The 2012 event includes new starts, a return to popular locations and for the first time, a thrilling Jayco Stage 5 hilltop finish at the top of Old Willunga Hill.”

Turtur also announced a new classification process would be used for the first time for Skoda King of the Mountain climbs.

 “Each Skoda KOM climb has been given a rating between one and three which will determine its level of difficulty,'' he said.

 ”Category one will cover the hardest climbs over Menglers Hill in the Barossa and Old Willunga Hill.

“This new classification will reward cyclists for tackling the hardest climbs and is expected to result in some fierce competition.

“It takes away the 20km `insurance' policy we've had in place after the second climb which in the past gave sprinters a chance to catch any breakaway.

“I don't think Andre Greipel would have won in 2009 had the stage finished at the top of Old Willunga. It would have come down to the three breakaways - Cadel Evans, Samuel Sanchez or Alejandro Valverde.”

The Tour continues to attract a super field  with Turtur leaving open the door to a wildcard entry for the Gerry Ryan-backed GreenEdge Cycling team should it not gain World Tour status.

“The University of SA will again have naming rights to the national road team,” Turtur said.

The race last year drew a record crowd of more than 782,000 to the streets of Adelaide and regional South Australia.

The 2012 Santos Tour Down Under Race Route:

Sunday, January 15 - Down Under Classic,  Rymill Park, Adelaide (51km)
Monday, January 16 - Rest Day
Tuesday, January 17 -  Stage 1  Prospect to Clare (149km)
Wednesday, January 18 - Stage 2  Lobethal to Stirling (148km)
Thursday, January 19 - Colemans Group Stage 3  Unley to Victor Harbor (134.5km)
Friday, January 20 - Bupa Stage 4  Norwood to Tanunda (130km)
Saturday, January 21 - Jayco Stage 5  McLaren Vale to Old Willunga Hill (151.5km)
Sunday, January  22 - Stage 6, Adelaide City Council Street Circuit - Elder Park, Adelaide (51km)