Photo gallery: Stage 1 of the 2017 Tour Down Under
Stage 1 of the Santos Tour Down Under was hot. 40ºC hot. Shorten-the-stage-by-more-than-20km hot. In the end the result was much the same as it might have been otherwise – victory for Caleb Ewan (Orica-Scott). He did the same thing 12 months ago, winning the same stage in the same town (Lyndoch).
Ewan now wears the leader’s ochre jersey and will do so when the riders battle the race’s toughest stage to Paracombe tomorrow. It’s sure to be a cracking day of bike racing, but before then, enjoy the following photos from day 1 of the 2017 TDU.
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- Simon Gerrans signs autographs before stage 1 gets underway.
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- Peter Sagan was a study of concentration at the startline after plenty of media and fan attention at the team van.
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- UAE Abu Dhabi is making its WorldTour debut at the 2017 Tour Down Under. It’s effectively the Lampre-Merida setup with new sponsors.
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- The riders get underway on stage 1, riding from Unley to Lyndoch.
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- Laurens De Vreese was the first to attack. No one came across to join him, so he rode the front on his own for nearly 100km.
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- Hydration is more than a little important when the mercury tops 40ºC.
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- Miles Scotson stands out in his Australian champ’s jersey. He’s on domestique duties this week … and likely for most of what is his neopro season.
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- Sometimes you have to go wide to get around.
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- It was a lonely ride for De Vreese with only the TV camera moto for company.
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- Ewan first, Danny Van Poppel second, Sam Bennett third.
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- The Tour Down Under has done away with podium hostesses for 2017.
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- The omnipresent Jens Voigt was on hand to present Laurens De Vreese with the award for most aggressive rider. De Vreese also leads the KOM classification.
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- Caleb Ewan leads the Tour Down Under after one stage.
