First launched in 2012, the Willunga Hill climb has been an integral a part of the lads’s Tour Down Under within the decade since.
The well-known hill has solely as soon as since been missed from the season-opening race – in 2023 when new race director Stuart O’Grady took over from Mike Turtur and made his personal mark on the Australian WorldTour race by together with a Mount Lofty summit end as an alternative.
The well-known climb had really been a staple of the race since its introduction on the 2003 version. It’s solely since 2012 that the climb has featured because the stage end, with intervening years bringing winners as diversified as Alberto Contador, André Greipel, Luis León Sánchez, and Allan Davis.
This 12 months, following its profitable introduction because the race decider on the 2024 Women’s Tour Down Under, the place Sarah Gigante soloed to victory, the climb is again within the males’s race.
Willunga Hill is climbed twice on stage ladies’s race on Saturday, with the end line on the high after 115km of racing round McLaren after which the 7.4% climb. Any time gaps created might be decisive on Sunday’s last stage round Sterling.
Mount Lofty will crown the general winner of the lads’s race on Sunday January 26, however Willunga Hill returns on Saturday’s stage 5.
This time it will likely be climbed on two events. The race street e book lists Willunga Hill as a 3 kilometre ascent with a mean gradient of seven.4% and most of 15.6%. however it’s rather more than that, with the race to the foot of the climb an enormous battle for place. The velocity on Willunga Hill can also be excessive, and the gradient is sufficient to create time gaps.
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Here we check out the stage winners on the high of the stage ending climb since 2012.
Results powered by FirstCycling
2012 – Valverde outsprints Gerrans
Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) scored his first win since his return from a doping suspension, outsprinting Australian champion Simon Gerrans (Orica-GreenEdge) on the high as Gerrans rose to the race lead.
Valverde went on to complete second total to Gerrans and would go on to take pleasure in a profitable 2012 marketing campaign, successful the Vuelta a Andalucía, a stage of the Tour de France at Peyragudes, two plus the factors jersey on the Vuelta a España, and bronze on the Valkenburg Worlds.
“I’m tremendous glad,” stated Valverde later. “My workforce has been excellent in the present day. I could not have gained with out them. It’s a extremely emotional second for me. This win is for all those that have supported me throughout my day without work the bike.
“The stage suited me – we put the workforce on the entrance, and to complete it off – it is an ideal comeback for me.”
2013 – Gerrans outpaces Jelte-Slagter
2012 could have been Gerrans’ second Tour Down Under win, although he wasn’t within the combine for the general win the following 12 months after shedding minutes early within the race.
He’d come out on high up Willunga Hill, although, beating Tom Jelte-Slagter (Blanco Pro Cycling) to the road on Australia Day to take his first win in a season that may see him declare his second profession Tour de France stage win on Corsica.
“I by no means gave up till proper to the road,” Gerrans stated after the win. “Especially when the younger Blanco man jumped throughout to us and went straight previous. I needed to get straight on his wheel and attempt to come previous within the last.
“I suppose we have had two completed up right here and I used to be second final 12 months and had a win this 12 months. It’s a pleasant option to spherical out the week.”
2014 – Porte’s first victory
Richie Porte’s (Sky) title will perpetually be synonymous with Willunga Hill, having celebrated victory on the high seven occasions throughout the Tour Down Under and Santos Festival of Cycling.
The Tasmanian scored his first win up the hill on his third Tour Down Under participation. His method of victory was a novel one, changing into the primary man to solo to the highest after abandoning high puncheurs together with Diego Ulissi (Lampre-Merida) and Simon Gerrans (Orica-GreenEdge).
It could be his solely win of the 2014 season following a breakout 2013 as Gerrans ascended into the lead on the way in which to a 3rd profession Tour Down Under title.
“It’s January, I’m not but in high kind simply but however to win in Australia on this climb is a really particular victory,” Porte stated. “Winning right here means every little thing for me. Sky is such an incredible workforce. It’s a good way to repay them for the assumption they’ve in me.”
2015 – Another dominant Porte journey
Fresh from successful the Australian time trial title, Richie Porte was as soon as once more in high kind on Willunga as he raced to a second victory in a row up the well-known hill.
He’d beat future BMC teammate Rohan Dennis to the highest by 9 seconds after launching two main assaults partway up the climb. However, it wasn’t sufficient to unseat the race chief, who held on by two seconds.
The win was the second of 9 for Porte in 2015 as he went on to seize Paris-Nice, the Volta a Catalunya, and the Giro del Trentino. The Tour Down Under title must wait, although.
“I do know this climb actually, rather well, higher than the end in Paracaombe,” Porte stated after the stage. “I’m simply dissatisfied that I got here wanting getting the jersey.”
2016 – New workforce, similar outcome for Porte
2016 noticed Richie Porte make his debut in BMC colors, however regardless of the change of workforce, it was the identical previous Porte on the street up Willunga Hill.
Porte went clear simply outdoors a kilometre to go, taking Sergio Henao (Sky) and Michael Woods (Cannondale) with him earlier than dropping each on the run to the road to assert victory quantity three – albeit as soon as once more falling seconds wanting the race lead, held for a fourth time by Simon Gerrans.
“To be sincere, I by no means anticipated that one,” Porte stated later. “Obviously, it didn’t go to plan yesterday with the time hole on the road however in the present day the BMC guys have been unimaginable.
“They backed me right here, which is good and I’ve solely simply began right here along with his workforce and its good to win in Australia on high of Willunga. It’s three in a row now.”
2017 – A Porte annihilation
Having taken three wins in a row up Willunga Hill solely to lose out on total victory by one, two, and 9 seconds within the three earlier editions of the Tour Down Under, Richie Porte left nothing to probability in 2017.
Already within the race lead since a stage 2 solo victory, the 31-year-old as soon as once more went solo, leaping clear 2km from the road on the race’s penultimate stage. The likes of Nathan Haas (Dimension Data) and Esteban Chaves (Orica-Scott) may solely watch as Porte rode away to win by 20 seconds and safe his first total title.
“I feel it’s going to make tomorrow just a little bit extra relaxed for us,” Porte stated with the win all however within the bag.
“This isn’t a simple climb, so to win it’s nice for morale. Obviously, the largest objective this 12 months is in July on the Tour de France, however issues are going effectively.”
2018 – Five in a row for Porte
Richie Porte made it 5 wins in 5 years in 2018, distancing Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-Scott) and Tom Jelte-Slagter (Dimension Data) with two massive assaults inside the ultimate 2km.
He’s put eight seconds between himself and Impey by the road, however the South African clung onto the race lead by advantage of stage positions with the pair tied on time. It was one other Willunga win for Porte, however one other Tour Down Under second place – his fourth, by a complete margin of 12 seconds.
“I let you know what that was the toughest one to win up to now,” Porte stated after taking the win.
2019 – Guess who? Number six…
Richie Porte’s sixth stage win atop Willunga Hill was his closest, as he led house Wout Poels (Sky) and Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-Scott) by lower than a second on the 2019 race’s last stage.
Porte loved a to-and-fro battle with the Dutchman earlier than popping out on high, whereas Impey, on the way in which to a second total crown, rode at his personal tempo to complete just some lengths again. For Porte, it was one of the simplest ways to start out of his spell at Trek-Segafredo after a three-year stint at BMC, although he was as soon as once more second on the rostrum, 13 seconds behind Impey.
“It’s a tough race for somebody like me to win, with only one uphill end however I got here right here with my new workforce and the boys have been implausible all week and in the present day,” Porte stated on the end.
“Hats off to Daryl Impey however to win on Willunga for a sixth time is a good feeling. It’s a good way to start out the 12 months with a brand new workforce.”
2020 – Holmes surges to shock Porte
Richie Porte could not have gained a seventh stage up Willunga Hill in what would show to be his last Tour Down Under, however he would stroll away with a second total title regardless of shedding out to Matthew Holmes (Lotto Soudal) on the climb.
The Briton was the strongest man left from the break of the day, in the long run proving so robust that even the King of Willunga could not drop him on the uphill street to the road.
He’d maintain on and outkick Porte within the closing metres, although the Australian may nonetheless have a good time after overhauling a two-second deficit to Daryl Impey to win the race for a second time.
“It would have been good to be the king of Willunga Hill once more however I’ll take the ochre jersey any day,” Porte stated afterwards. “It’s implausible to win once more. For our workforce to additionally win the Women’s Tour Down Under after which for me to win the lads’s race, it is an incredible race for us.”
2024 – Oscar Onley confirms his climbing abilities
Oscar Onley confirmed his potential and beat the pre-race favourites to win on Willunga Hill in 2024.
The Scott beat ultimately total winner Stephen Williams (Israel-Premier Tech) to take his first skilled victory.
He misplaced ten valuable seconds on the ultimate stage to complete fourth total however Willunga Hill all the time reveals true expertise, with Onley occurring to take pleasure in a breakthrough 2024 season.
2021-22 – The Santos Festival of Cycling
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In the absence of the worldwide WorldTour race because of the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing journey restrictions, the Australian peloton got here collectively in 2021 and 2022 to tackle the Santos Festival of Cycling.
Willunga Hill featured in each males’s and girls’s races in 2021 as Richie Porte continued his domination for a seventh win atop the climb and Sarah Gigante previewed her 2023 Tour Down Under show with a dominant journey. In 2022, native rider Angus Lyons soloed house for an upset win as Porte savoured his final journey up his favorite hill.
2024 – Gigante dominates
While the lads’s race has loved, and endured, the climb up Willunga Hill for a decade, it was solely this 12 months that noticed the Women’s Tour Down Under tackle the climb.
And as the lads’s race has time after time, the climb introduced a house winner as Sarah Gigante – resplendent in her new AG Insurance-Soudal colors after a switch from Movistar – soloed house. The 22-year-old attacked from the underside of the climb, drawing a number of others along with her earlier than pushing on solo for the largest win of her profession to this point.
“I can not even start to let you know a lot meaning after the final one right here three years in the past [at the Santos Festival of Cycling]. It felt like every little thing went unsuitable since then in so some ways,” Gigante stated afterwards.
“To come again full circle and with my new workforce they usually imagine in me a lot and I’m simply so grateful to everybody who stored believing in me. It’s so particular.”