More climbs, time trial feature in beefed-up Tour
The Tour's iconic Queen stage south of Adelaide will feature three climbs up Willunga Hill for the first time in race history, before its summit finish. Previously, the stage had no more than two Willunga climbs.
The last stage in the Adelaide Hills will feature eight laps of the 21km Stirling circuit - again the most times that course has been used on one day.
Another famous Tour Down Under climb, Corkscrew, will feature twice in stage two.
A twilight prologue time trial was introduced to the Tour in 2023, but wet conditions spoiled the spectacle and it was shelved for the last two editions.
The new 3.6km prologue course will start at the Victoria Square race headquarters in the Adelaide CBD and end at the old Victoria Park racecourse.
"Feedback from men's teams was they wanted a more attacking race, so we have brought the prologue back which creates an opportunity for riders targeting the (leader's) ochre jersey to take time from the very first day," race director Stuart O'Grady said.
"We've also added some new challenges like two climbs up Corkscrew Road that will be a real GC (general classification) shaker, and the final day has moved from a sprint-friendly stage in the city to a really hard circuit around Stirling where anything could happen."
The women's Tour will also feature all 15 WorldTour-level teams for the first time. Its third and final stage will feature two Corkscrew Hill climbs, another first for them.
The women will race from January 17-19, with the men's Tour from the 20th to the 25th.
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