The Santos Tour Down Under has confirmecd that it will collaborate with Tour de France organiser, Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), according to a report in Cycling Weekly. As reported, ASO will manage the media distribution of the stage race and expand its reach to Australia.
The Santos Tour Down Under was first held in 1999. Taking place in Adelaide on 15-22 January 2012, the UCI WorldTour event is the first stop on the world cycling calendar. The Tour Down Under joined the prestigious UCI WorldTour in 2008 and became the first event outside cycling’s traditional home of Europe to do so.
Tour d France organiser ASO is actively involved in the organisation of races in the China, the Middle East, the US and in Europe. As reported by Cycling Weekly, Tour de France Race Director, Christian Prudhomme will visit the race Down Under for three days, arriving on 17 January to help kick-start the partnership.
In a press release, the Santos Tour Down Under organisers noted that ASO had been approved ‘to manage the international broadcast distribution of the South Australian event.’
