Daryl Impey wins Santos Tour Down Under
22 January 2018
33-year-old all-rounder Daryl Impey has secured the overall title at the 2018 Tour Down Under, becoming the first South African in history to win the Australian WorldTour race. A second place to Australian sprinter Caleb Ewan on today’s final stage gave Mitchelton-SCOTT a podium place on all six stages of the 2018 Tour Down Under. Ewan finished with a stage win, two second places and a third place, whilst Impey himself also wrapped up three second-place finishes on his way to overall victory.
When you look back at the successes of Mitchelton-SCOTT over the past six seasons, Impey features as an invaluable teammate in many of them – across all terrains. A changing of the guard in the Australian outfit has opened up the door to more personal success for Impey in 2018, and the South African has grabbed it with two hands in his debut race for the season – today’s Tour Down Under victory the biggest of his career. Impey’s exploits this week give Mitchelton-SCOTT the double in Adelaide following Amanda Spratt’s title defence in the Women’s Tour Down Under last week.
Daryl Impey – 2018 Tour Down Under champion:
“Wearing the yellow jersey at the Tour de France was a magical moment but this is very close to that. I worked really hard for this one and especially knowing how important it is to the team and the sponsors. It was a high-pressure race for us, everyone expects a lot so to top it off with a win is very special. It is a step up in my career, you get these little stepping stones and you reach bigger mile stones and I’ve proved to myself now, as I’ve always had a little bit of self-doubt. I’ve ridden for guys who have been in this situation and it is a lot easier riding for someone else, so to come in and take the pressure for a change and have a go I am very happy to have been able to do that. It’s one of the most special races of the season so I will like to come back next year and wear the number one, you don’t get too many opportunities to do that.”
Matt White – Sport Director:
“Daryl is an impressive rider who has helped for six years, from the sprint to the mountains and team time trials, you name it and Daryl has done it in support of other guys. He has had some great wins but this is his biggest win of his career and everyone in this organisation is very proud of him. He was the best bike rider here this week because he was the most consistent across the six-days so he thoroughly deserves this win. I think a few different things helped us along this week for example the extreme temperatures which suit Daryl and I think this is actually the best we’ve ever seen him.
Tour Down Under – FINAL General Classification:
1. Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-SCOTT) 20:03:34
2. Richie Porte (BMC Racing) ST
3. Tom-Jelte Slagter (Dimension Data) 0:16
Image courtesy of Getty Images.
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