Equal prize money paid to men and women at the Tour Down Under  

The Tour Down Under paid out equal prize money for the men's and women's races for the first time

The organisers of the Tour Down Under to paid out equal prize money for the men’s and women’s races and received widespread applause and support, with women riders especially pleased by the news.

Amanda Spratt from (Mitchelton-Scott) won this year’s women’s race said afterwards “Wow, what a huge step forward for equality.”

Stage winner Chlose Hosking from (Alé–Cipollini) said: “Just wow. Huge news & just one more example of how women’s sport is on the up and in the forefront of the public’s mind in Australia "

Australian Annette Edmondson from (Wiggle-High5) said: “A HUGE step forward for women’s cycling! Thank you, Australia!! 

The announcement was made by South Australia Minister for Tourism Leon Bignell at the TDU Legends Night dinner on Sunday evening.

Due to equal prize money being awarded, the total prize money for the women’s race grew from $15,000 AUS to $100,000 AUS dollars.

“This is exciting news for women’s sport and I’m thrilled to announce our government is providing equal prize money for female riders in the Santos Women’s Tour Down Under,” he said. “I wrote to UCI President, Mr David Lappartient, in November last year and we finished the discussion today and agreed the Santos Women’s Tour Down Under was the perfect event to lead the way for equal prize money.

“These athletes are at the top of their game, display professionalism determined and skill during every stage of the hard-fought race. “It’s only fair the prize money they receive is on par with their male counterparts for each stage as well as the general classification.”

UCI president David Lappartient said “Prize money for 2.1 UCI sanctioned Tour Down Under Women’s race is now equal to men’s! I applaud the Austrailian Government's commitment to support women's cycling and thrilled to see that UCI’s first World Tour event leads the way for equal prize money! Lots to learn from this action. I am a strong advocate for women’s empowerment in sports in general and cycling more specifically.”

The TDU’s move is not the only step that it has taken to modernise its races, last year it stopped using podium girls.

The Women’s Tour Down Under is a UCI 2.1-ranked event – one step down from the top-level WorldTour.

The men’s event was the opening race in the WorldTour calendar and Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-Scott) won the 2018 race ahead of racefavorite Richie Porte from BMC Racing.