Nicola Rutzou
The Spirit of Tasmania Cycling Tour took place over the weekend. It is one of the oldest and most prestigious national cycling tours in Australia. First raced in 1930, it is now part of the ProVelo Super League.
Raced over four stages, the Tour of Tasmania started on Friday with a criterium around Devonport, which Keely Bennett (Meridian Blue Cycling) and Kurt Eather (CCACHE x Bodywrap) won.
Bennett secured the victory in Devonport off the back of a well-executed team strategy. The Meridian Blue squad focused solely on supporting Bennett for the final sprint, conserving their resources for the final lap. Sophie Marr (Praties Cycling Team) was second, while Alli Anderson (Butterfields Ziptrak Racing) took third place.
Coming into the criterium, all eyes were on Team Brennan’s Blake Agnoletto. His Brennan team were active all race but were challenged by the CCACHE X BODYWRAP team, who were ever present at the front of the field, controlling the back half of the race with a tight leash for their sprinter Kurt Eather. Eather led the sprint and held on to take a decisive win ahead of League leader Blake Agnoletto. Zac Marriage (Butterfields Ziptrak Racing) took third and also four bonus seconds, which would be valuable in his search for the GC.
On Saturday morning, the riders set out on a road race from Sheffield , with Hamish McKenzie (Tasmanian Institute of Sport) and Sophie Marr (Praties Cycling) crossing the line first.
Setting off in brisk conditions from Sheffield, Belinda Bailey (McLardy McShane Cycling Team) was the first rider to establish a gap, which grew to over three minutes. The challenging climb of Union Bridge reduced the peloton to only 14 riders. Sophie Marr (Praties Cycling Team) emerged first over the crest of the final rise only 150m from the line and took the win.
The Men’s field had an aggressive start, with constant attacks before a break was formed about 30km in. The three riders held on the Union Bridge climb, where another flurry of attacks saw Jack Ward (Team Brennan) head up the road solo while a chase group scrambled behind. Hamish McKenzie (Tasmanian Institute of Sport) was part of the chase group and played a smart finale, using the current U23 League rivalry between his rivals to secure the win.
Stage 3 was an afternoon time trial, which Oliver Bleddyn (Team Brennan) and Alli Anderson (Butterfields ZipTrak) won.
The Queen’s stage 4 on Sunday took riders around Deloraine and through the Meanders Hills before reaching the pivotal final climb.
Lauren Bates and Jack Ward (Team Brennan) won the Stage 4 road race, with Ward pulling out a big enough gap with his solo win to also claim the men’s tour general classification. Ward crossed the line 17 seconds ahead of Zac Marriage (Butterfields Ziptrak), giving him a one-second advantage ahead of Marriage on the men’s overall.
Sophie Marr (Praties) claimed the women’s GC victory when she crossed the line to take second place behind Bates in the 50km hilltop finale of the third round of the ProVelo Super League.
After racing in Round 3 of the ProVelo Super League weekend, Sophie Marr (Praties Cycling Team) has claimed the lead in the SBS Women’s League. With 352 points, she has overtaken her teammate Talia Appleton, who now sits second with 278 points. Katelyn Nicholson (Butterfields Ziptrak Racing) drops to third with 252 points.
The weekend’s competition saw Jack Ward (Team Brennan) take the Tour of Tasmania title by the narrowest of margins, just a single second ahead of Zac Marriage (Butterfields Ziptrak Racing). Ward’s victory and dominance in the jersey classifications have extended his lead at the top of the overall League standings with 360 points. Teammate Blake Agnoletto follows him in second (256 points), and Marriage moves up to third with 233 points.
