Happy New Year, and Happy New Season!
The opening race of the 2024 UCI WorldTour is already upon us, with the Santos Tour Down Under running from Tuesday 16th, to Sunday 21st. The six days cover a total of 825km from Tanunda to Mount Lofty, and Team Bahrain Victorious are in Australia with a balanced team, ready to fight for victory on each stage, and challenge for the overall GC.
Lead Sports Director is Neil Stephens, who comments,
“Four of the guys are young and new to this race, are really excited to be here and all really keen to do their jobs well. Everyone is enjoying the Australian experience so far”
“It’s a race in two parts really: stages 1-4 are opportunities for the sprinters but we’ll certainly try to keep the different areas covered of course.”
Our fast man in Australia is Phil Bauhaus, who took the second stage when the race returned after Covid in 2023. His first chance comes on day one, which takes in three circuits in Barossa totalling 144km. The following day is another potential sprint finish, although this time, there is a short but very steep climb: Fox Creek. The peloton will tackle it twice, and we will surely see that 1.6km ascent used by those who want to thin out the leading group, and challenge for the win in Lobethal.
Stephens says,
“Phil Bauhaus is coming back to the TdU for a second consecutive year. Last year, he had some great support from the team and was able to pull off stage one. He’s certainly coming back trying to aim for stages, he’s probably in even better shape than he was last time around, and he’s really looking forward to the race once again”
Day 3 is another flat profile of just over 140km. It will be a fast, flat finish into Campbeltown and promises to be a frantic fight for victory at a frenetic pace.
Supporting Bauhaus in the latter kilometres on these opening days will be one of two Australians in our team, Cameron Scott.
“Cam is another rider who was here last year,” explains Stephens. “He’s an Adelaide boy too – a local, so he’s been helping us during the training days since we arrived. His job, as well as supporting the team generally, of course – will be as the last man in the lead out for Phil.”
On Friday, the race starts to be more selective, as stage 4 has an uphill finish in Port Elliot, with the ocean in the riders’ sight as they approach the line. And then it’s the weekend, and those GC boys who have made it safely through the first part of the TdU can come out to play.
Our leader is Jack Haig, riding on home roads, and Stephens is positive about Haig’s chances now he’s returned to his home country for the first time in a few years!
“It’s great to have Jack on board. It’s a while since he’s done the TdU and it’s brilliant to have him here leading the team. He’s really keen to do well in this race for the team, and it’s an added bonus being an Australian in Australia! We’ll try our best to be amongst the best riders and finish with a high GC for Jack”
Stage 5 sees a return to Willunga Hill. The climb is a favourite of the race organisers and of the spectators; so much so it has almost become synonymous with the Tour Down Under itself. It’s 3km, averaging 7.4% (with a maximum gradient of 15.6%), and this year, the bunch will crest it as part of a two-lap closing circuit before ascending it again to the finish line.
Along with Jack, Phil and Cameron, Bahrain have three newcomers to the season opener, in Fran Miholjević, Johan Price Pejtersen, Nicolò Buratti and, making his debut for the team: Torstein Træen. The Norwegian may be something of an unknown for our supporters, having signed from UNO-X in the close season, but Stephens is confident in the 28 year old’s potential.
“Torstein will be there as a really big support in the mountains, and who knows … he might even do well in GC on his own!
The others are all young guys, and all have different experiences in different areas. They’re a good bunch who work well together, and each of them is looking forward to doing his best out here.”
The Santos Tour Down Under is held in the height of the Southern Hemisphere summer, which explains why none of the race days are over 146km. And the scorching heat is as much of a factor in the fight for the ochre jersey as the parcours.
The 2024 winner of that leader’s jersey will be decided – as it was last year – atop Mount Lofty. Three loops of a finishing circuit means three times up the 1.3km climb, which averages 7.3% and maxes out at 13.3%.
It was a hugely positive start to 2023 for TBV, with stage wins for Bauhaus and Pello Bilbao, who also finished 3rd overall, and Stephens sees no reason why we can’t repeat, or even better, those results this time around:
Those last 2 stages are the GC stages. There are plenty of hills and there’s going to be plenty of action! I’m hopeful we can not only win at least one early stage with Phil, but also get our GC riders into the high positions overall.
Whichever of the GC hopefuls can hold it together during the week, and turn it on up Wilunga and the final mountain, will reach the ‘lofty’ heights of 2024 Tour Down Under champion.
Let the season commence!
