Border cycling’s highest-profile identity says the appearance of three-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome in the North East is the biggest moment in the sport’s history.
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Former European competitor and Albury businessman Steve Kilpatrick could barely contain his excitement that Froome will contest the Herald Sun Tour, which takes in Wangaratta, Falls Creek, Mount Beauty and Beechworth on Thursday and Friday.
“Without a doubt it’s the biggest moment in cycling around here,” he said.
“To get a Tour de France winner here is just incredible, but not only to get a Tour de France winner, a three-time winner and one of his main rivals for this year’s Tour de France in Esteban Chaves.
“There’s nothing that’s reached these highs in the past, this has taken it through the stratosphere.”
Cycling has its ‘big three’ in Europe, with Colombian Chaves finishing second in the Giro d’Italia and third in the Vuelta a Espana last year.
And he’s coming after Froome’s crown.
“You’ve got the football players, like Ronaldo, and Messi, and there’s the Federer’s, Nadal’s, the Grand Slam tennis players, and then you’ve got guys like Usain Bolt, and then there’s the NFL quarterbacks and the NBA players,” Herald Sun Tour media’s David Culbert said.
“(Chris) Froome is up there in that category. Is he bigger than Federer? Probably not. Bigger than Ronaldo? Probably not.
“But he’s in the conversation every year as to who the best sportspeople are because the Tour de France is such an iconic global event.”
Born in Kenya, Froome has racked up 10 years as a professional.
“He’s incredibly dedicated and professional, cycling is the most important thing so their attention to detail is extreme,” Culbert said.
“Chris rode the Herald Sun Tour last year because he thought it would help his preparation for the Tour de France.
“He won the tour on the final day and he then rode his bike back to Melbourne.”
And Culbert says the public has unbelievable access to the riders.
“They rock up, they sign in, they stand around, they take pictures, they sign autographs, they chat, it’s very relaxed,” he said.
“It’s absolutely worth having a look, when the Tour (de France) is on in July you can say I saw that guy, and I dare say that doesn’t happen very often in regional Australia.”
Kilpatrick says the cycling industry will shut down.
“There will be no-one at work on Thursday and Friday, everyone’s going to be lining the course somewhere, to get a glimpse of these guys,” he joked.
Stage one is from Falls Creek to Wangaratta on Thursday with stage two from Mount Beauty to Beechworth on Friday.
