Aurélien Canot, Media365, published on Tuesday January 21, 2025 at 9:14 a.m.
Like last year, the first winner of the World Tour calendar is named Sam Welsford. The Australian sprinter from the Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe team won the first stage of the Tour Down Under on Tuesday, which traditionally opens the season.
Encore repeated for Sam Welsford. As he had already done during the last exercise, the 29-year-old Australian sprinter won the first stage of the first race of the season on the World Tour calendar, namely the Tour Down Under, which traditionally opens the exercise since now seventeen years old (Editor’s note: The event was created nine years earlier, in 1999). Already winner this year of the Villawood Men’s Classic, the Critérium du Santos Tour Down Under, Welsford demonstrated that he was in great shape and confirmed that it was impossible to beat him in his favorite exercise on this event which had seen him winning last year during all the mass arrivals and thus crossing the final finish line with three stage victories under his belt. the rider from the Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe team who arrived from DSM two years ago added a fourth to his list by once again showing himself faster than everyone, this Tuesday in Gumeracha during the 1st stage, part of Prospect (150.7 kilometers on the menu).
Lagging coquard
Promised to the sprinters, this first episode of this Tour Down Under 25th of the name once again smiled on the huge favorite announced for victory in the event of a new arrival in the sprint. As is his habit, the Olympic champion of the 2024 Paris Games this summer with his country in the team pursuit produced his effort two hundred meters from the line without anyone really contesting his new victory, even if the British Matthew Brennan (Visma Lease a Bike) was not far from beating him to the post. He finally finished second, behind his compatriot Matthew Balls (Groupama-FDJ), who signed his first podium in three years, while Bryan Coquard (Cofidis), unable to get involved in the final race, finished in the same time as Welsford but far away, in 16th place. The Australian, again as in 2024, takes the first leader’s jersey, four seconds ahead of Brennan.
