2019 Tour Down Under teams gather in Adelaide - Gallery
Peter Sagan, Porte and Viviani among star turns at presentation
The 2019 Tour Down Under elite men's peloton assembled in Adelaide on Saturday for the official team presentation, where Peter Sagan, Richie Porte and Mat Hayman were among those to draw the loudest cheers from the crowds.
The first WorldTour race of the season starts on Tuesday, while the main event is preceded, as ever, by Sunday’s People’s Choice Classic criterium. Saturday’s presentation saw all 18 WorldTour teams display their new kit for the 2019 campaign.
Sagan is kicking off his season at the Tour Down Under for the third consecutive year. The Slovakian champion will look to hit the ground running in Australia before travelling to Argentina to continue his campaign at the Vuelta a San Juan.
Porte is making his WorldTour debut in Trek-Segafredo colours and is seeking a sixth consecutive stage win atop Willunga Hill. The Tasmanian will also hope to add a second overall title following his 2017 triumph.
2018 overall winner Daryl Impey returns once again at the head of a strong Mitchelton-Scott team, which includes Luke Durbridge and Mat Hayman, who is riding his final race before hanging up his wheels as a professional. The 2016 Paris-Roubaix winner was heartily acclaimed at Saturday’s presentation.
Italian champion Elia Viviani (Deceuninck-QuickStep) will be a favourite for the People’s Choice Classic and the sprint stages at the Tour Down Under, though he will face stiff competition from fast men like Caleb Ewan (Lotto Soudal) and Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain-Merida).
Other stars kicking off their campaigns in Australia include Rohan Dennis, Domenico Pozzovivo (Bahrain-Merida), Luke Rowe, Wout Poels (Team Sky), Nathan Haas (Katusha-Alpecin), Michael Valgren (Dimension Data) and Pierre Latour (AG2R La Mondiale).
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Scroll through the gallery above for an extensive look at the riders and jerseys of the 2019 Tour Down Under.