Nat Bromhead
This Sunday, September 11, was to be Richie Porte’s final race day as a professional bike rider.
That has been cut short with the cancellation of the Tour of Britain after the passing of Queen Elizabeth II – and we do extend our sympathy at this sad and reflective time.
With the 2022 Tour of Britain his final race, the 37yo Tasmanian bows out of the pro peloton after a stunning career that has spanned three decades – from his first race at the Tour of Wellington in 2007 to Thursday’s Stage 5 of the TOB that finished in Mansfield.
Starting out with the Praties team (that evolved into Bennelong SwissWellness Cycling Team p/b Cervelo), Porte went on to ride with Saxo Bank, Team Sky, BMC Racing Team, Trek Segafredo then finally the Ineos Grenadiers.
In a career spanning 13 years his highlights are many and varied. They include riding 17 Grand Tours, finishing 3rd at the Tour de France, winning the Tour Down Under twice, winning Paris-Nice twice and numerous other major races including Tour de Swisse, Tour de Romandie, Criterium du Dauphine and more. He also famously wore the pink leaders jersey at the Giro d’Italia in 2010.
A full Richie Porte feature interview will appear in the November / December edition of Bicycling Australia Magazine, with Porte’s mate Lee ’Hollywood’ Turner working on that now.
In the meantime here’s a gallery featuring just a few of Richie’s stunning career highlights.
