{"id":250855,"date":"2026-07-01T02:30:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T02:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/01\/willunga-hill-with-a-twist-and-a-stirling-finale-for-double-race-days-of-2027-tour-down-under\/"},"modified":"2026-07-01T02:30:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T02:30:11","slug":"willunga-hill-with-a-twist-and-a-stirling-finale-for-double-race-days-of-2027-tour-down-under","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/01\/willunga-hill-with-a-twist-and-a-stirling-finale-for-double-race-days-of-2027-tour-down-under\/","title":{"rendered":"Willunga Hill with a twist and a Stirling finale for double race days of 2027 Tour Down Under"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div id=\"article-body\">\n<p id=\"elk-36f14b93-3aee-4be6-b238-3113a42f98df\">The new format for the Santos Tour Down Under, where the <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/womens-cycling\/womens-tour-down-under-2026\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/womens-cycling\/womens-tour-down-under-2026\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/womens-cycling\/womens-tour-down-under-2026\/\" rel=\"noopener\">women&#8217;s event<\/a> will run alongside the final three days of the <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/tour-down-under\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/tour-down-under\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/tour-down-under\/\" rel=\"noopener\">six-stage men&#8217;s event<\/a>, will also be bringing some new course twists including a dual ascent of Willunga Hill where the traditional approach will be flipped.<\/p>\n<p>The 874km men&#8217;s race, from January 19 to January 24, will start at 10:40am local time each day and the first stage will eschew the normal sprint-friendly start and immediately open up with a 170km day which will keep the entire field of the opening WorldTour race of the season on its toes. The route will start at Henley Beach and includes three ascents of Checker Hill before the Gumeracha finish line so the battle for the ochre jersey of the leader will begin early.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"elk-seasonal\"\/><\/p>\n<aside data-block-type=\"embed\" data-render-type=\"fte\" data-skip=\"dealsy\" data-widget-type=\"seasonal\" class=\"hawk-root\"\/>\n<p id=\"elk-36f14b93-3aee-4be6-b238-3113a42f98df-2\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Stage 2 of the men&#8217;s race may give the fast finishers their chance, with three runs around a 50km loop from Angaston which takes riders through the Barossa and has a gradual uphill run to the finish. Then on the 170km stage 3 from Lobethal the climbing legs will be tested, with two laps around Mount Lofty and a double ascent of the Corkscrew before turning right to head toward the Campbelltown finish line.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-6 w-full overflow-hidden rounded-[10px] lg:my-8\" data-component-name=\"JwPlayer:Carousel\" data-jwp-carousel=\"\" data-jwp-carousel-payload=\"{&quot;ids&quot;:{&quot;playerID&quot;:&quot;jYDCcabO&quot;,&quot;searchPlaylistID&quot;:&quot;gwjdoYHD&quot;,&quot;divID&quot;:&quot;botr_gwjdoYHD_jYDCcabO_div&quot;,&quot;fallbackPlaylistID&quot;:&quot;gwjdoYHD&quot;,&quot;fallbackDivID&quot;:&quot;botr_gwjdoYHD_jYDCcabO_div&quot;,&quot;key&quot;:&quot;X9\\\/mXVGac0NphghLH9hZaqWA5d3dhAM\\\/Ih07grnEyMLjuO2E&quot;,&quot;tintLogo&quot;:true,&quot;useSearchPlaylist&quot;:false,&quot;enabled&quot;:true},&quot;signPostingEnabled&quot;:true,&quot;signPostingLinkEnabled&quot;:true,&quot;waitForAdLoad&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnDesktop&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnMobile&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnTablet&quot;:false}\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-nowrap items-center justify-between gap-3 bg-zinc-900 px-[14px] py-3\" data-jwp-carousel-header=\"\">\n<div class=\"flex min-w-0 shrink items-center\"><span class=\"inline-flex items-center gap-1.5 text-sm font-article-heading capitalize leading-5 text-white whitespace-nowrap\"><span class=\"jwp-carousel-title-mobile\"\/><span class=\"jwp-carousel-title-desktop\">Latest Videos From<\/span><span class=\"jwp-carousel-brand inline-flex items-center\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"aspect-video w-full min-h-[200px] lg:min-h-[330px] relative overflow-hidden bg-black\" data-jwp-carousel-container=\"\">\n<div class=\"absolute inset-0 size-full items-center justify-center bg-white\" data-jwp-carousel-fallback=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" data-new-v2-image=\"true\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/flexiimages\/gmvwmhupgi1715762145.svg\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/flexiimages\/gmvwmhupgi1715762145.svg\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] max-h-12 w-auto\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">From Friday January 22 the three-stage and 397.3km women&#8217;s Tour Down Under will also begin, starting at 12:10 each day at 90 minutes after the men set off, and <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/womens-cycling\/womens-tour-down-under-to-run-alongside-final-three-days-of-mens-race-in-2027\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/womens-cycling\/womens-tour-down-under-to-run-alongside-final-three-days-of-mens-race-in-2027\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/womens-cycling\/womens-tour-down-under-to-run-alongside-final-three-days-of-mens-race-in-2027\/\" rel=\"noopener\">tackling the same course and same distance<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">\u201cBy having two races out on the roads at the same time, we had to get creative with our course design and I feel there will be a lot more unknowns next January, race director Stuart O&#8217;Grady said in a media release. \u201cWe\u2019ve had to look for different roads and climbs, so it will be a different looking TDU and I\u2019m excited by that.<\/p>\n<aside data-component-name=\"Recirculation:ArticleRiver\" data-recirculation-type=\"inline\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"Trending Bar\" data-nosnippet=\"\" class=\"clear-both pt-2 pb-0 mb-4\">\n        <span class=\"&#10;            flex&#10;            after:content-[''] after:flex-1 after:ml-4 after:my-[0.7rem] after:border-t after:border-solid after:border-t-[#ccc]&#10;            before:content-[''] before:flex-1 before:mr-4 before:my-[0.7rem] before:border-t before:border-solid before:border-t-[#ccc]&#10;            font-article-heading pb-0 text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,1em)] uppercase sm:text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,0.875em)] font-bold&#10;        \"><br \/>\n            You may like<br \/>\n        <\/span><\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">\u201cThings like three ascensions of Checker Hill will spice up the race from day one, and a new approach to Willunga Hill on the penultimate day could really change the way that stage is raced.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">The first double race day on Friday, stage 4 for the men and stage one for the women&#8217;s race, will set off from Glenelg which was also where the first Women&#8217;s WorldTour ranked edition began. The 144.7km course will pass through Chandlers Hill, McLaren Vale and Nettle Hill before returning to a waterside finish on The Esplanade.<\/p>\n<div id=\"slice-container-newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-6ft2WQatkSpvvobM88tRiW\" class=\"slice-container newsletter-inbodyContent-slice newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-6ft2WQatkSpvvobM88tRiW slice-container-newsletterForm\">\n<div data-hydrate=\"true\" class=\"newsletter-form__wrapper newsletter-form__wrapper--inbodyContent\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__container\">\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__top-bar\"\/>\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__main-section\">\n<p class=\"newsletter-form__strapline\">The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;Glenelg has become symbolic for big moments in our women\u2019s race so it\u2019s fitting that it hosts the start of the first ever men\u2019s and women\u2019s double header \u2013 which also promises to be a really hard first stage of the women\u2019s race,\u201d said O&#8217;Grady.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">On Saturday the race will then sweep up to the top of the iconic climb of the event, Willunga Hill, twice but the 116km stage from Christies Beach will instead be tackling the Willunga loop in the opposite direction to previous years.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">The final day of racing will deliver an Adelaide Hills finale, with the finish line in Stirling, just as it was for the men&#8217;s event in 2026. However, this time the start will be at Norwood, delivering an altered path to the finish line that includes Norton Summit, KOM and QOM points up for grabs in Ashton and Checker Hill before heading to Lobethal and Hahndorf. Finally, riders will take on a lap of Stirling before the finish line delivers the victors of the first men&#8217;s and women&#8217;s WorldTour races of the 2027 season.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/racing\/willunga-hill-with-a-twist-and-a-stirling-finale-for-double-race-days-of-2027-tour-down-under\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The new format for the Santos Tour Down Under, where the women&#8217;s event will run alongside the final three days of the six-stage men&#8217;s event, will also be bringing some new course twists including a dual ascent of Willunga Hill where the traditional approach will be flipped. The 874km men&#8217;s race, from January 19 to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":250856,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6804],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-250855","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cycling"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250855","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=250855"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250855\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/250856"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=250855"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=250855"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=250855"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}