TOUR DOWN UNDER

Mr BIGNELL (Mawson) (16:09): My question is to the Premier. What were the highlights of the 2008 Tour Down Under?

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. M.D. RANN (Ramsay—Premier, Minister for Economic Development, Minister for Social Inclusion, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Sustainability and Climate Change) (16:09): I must say it would have been nice to have had prior notice of such a controversial question. I want to pay tribute to someone I know that you hold dearly, and that is Joan Hall. Joan Hall was approached by Mike Turtur—

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. M.D. RANN: No, Joan Hall was the person behind this, and she believed in Mike Turtur's vision for a race, a Tour Down Under, here in Adelaide. And it is really important in this place to recognise the achievements and contributions of people from the other side of parliament—which is why we supported Joan Hall in that exercise. I know that members opposite know that Joan Hall is a person upon whose loyalty they could rely. The point of the matter is that the Tour Down Under was terrific. However, we saw an opportunity to take it up to the next step, which was to get Pro Tour status, the first time anywhere outside Europe had done so. The people of South Australia came out in force. The riders loved it, the teams loved it and international press loved it. However, the opposition today, in stark contrast to the opposition of the past, came out and bagged the race.

An honourable member: Rubbish!

The Hon. M.D. RANN: The member thinks it is rubbish. I was there on the Sunday night, and so was the member for Mawson. Go and ask the Australian international riders what they think of the Liberal Party's attack on the Tour Down Under. How mealy-mouthed can you get? One minute they want to say, 'This was our race,' but when it was taken up to a much bigger level internationally they wanted us to talk it down. That is exactly the same approach we saw taken by the Liberal opposition against the Formula One Grand Prix. They cannot help themselves. We are big enough as a government to have people from other than the Labor Party in our cabinet; that is the difference. They cannot even agree amongst themselves. Let me answer this controversial question directly.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. M.D. RANN: The member for Mawson's strong personal support for cycling and this tremendous event is well known. His involvement, including event attendance and participation, was amply rewarded when the tour completed the Willunga leg, and congratulations also to the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, who had a heart attack just a few months ago. There he was in lycra. I understand, according to a reliable informant (him), that he was in the first 25 per cent of the amateurs coming across the line. I am not sure where the member for Mawson was. Congratulations to those members on this side of the house who embraced Joan Hall's vision and built upon it. The Tour Down Under was an absolutely fantastic event, and this was the year that we broke the records.

The Tour Down Under continues to go from strength to strength as one of the state's major tourism drawcards and a powerful marketing vehicle for South Australia. This year's Tour Down Under has pushed the southaustralia.com site to achieve 107,207 visitors in January. As the first UCI Pro Tour event outside Europe, the 2008 Tour Down Under was bigger and better than ever before. With its elevated status, the Tour Down Under attracted an exceptional field of athletes. The top names included Olympic gold medallist, Australia's Graeme Brown, Giro d'Italia stage winners, such as Jan Robert Forster, Tour de France stage winners, including Robbie McEwen, and our own Stuart O'Grady, winner of the prestigious Paris-Roubaix race in 2007—and he is someone who does read Camus.

We had 133 riders from 22 countries representing 19 teams competing for the first UCI Pro Tour points of the season. This is an increase of five teams and 21 riders over the 2007 event. There were world-class riders, such as Erki Putsep, the Estonian national champion, and Benoit Joachim, the Luxemburg national champion. South Australia was also honoured to welcome Cadel Evans and five-time Tour de France winner and twice the winner of the Giro d'Italia, Miguel Indurain, who were here to support the Tour Down Under. Miguel Indurain, arguably, along with Lance Armstrong, are the two greatest cyclists of all time. I will quote directly, because I want to contrast one of the world's greatest riders with the attacks by the Liberal Party on a race that on Friday they claimed as their own. Miguel Indurain said:

I can't put my finger on it...the most amazing place. I have been impressed by everything; each place has been different to the next. Adelaide is a nice city, we loved Kangaroo Island for its nature and relaxed attitude, the Barossa for the wine. Everything that I have seen has been so different.

He went on to say:

The way that cycling in Australia is run is very impressive. There were a lot of kids, starting from a very young age which is good to see.

For the first time in any UCI Pro Tour event, the national team, Team UniSA, was allowed to compete in the event, and it sure did prove its worth, with Allan Davis—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. M.D. RANN: I've got plenty of time.

Mr Williams interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, the member for MacKillop! When I have called order, he needs to be quiet.

The Hon. M.D. RANN: Allan Davis came first at Victor Harbor for stage 3 and was in the top four during three other stages—I am not sure how he did down at 'Seaforth', but we will check on that. The Tour Down Under—

The Hon. M.J. Atkinson: The forgotten south.

The Hon. M.D. RANN: For the Liberals it is not the forgotten south; it is the unknown south. I think it is over in Western Australia; it is a couple of thousand miles to the west of Adelaide. The Tour Down Under was seen by a record-breaking 533,000 people, who came out to experience the race first-hand. In addition to this, tens of thousands of people attended the street parties and events associated with the Tour Down Under, which benefited South Australian regional economies. The Skoda Breakaway Series once again proved popular, as recreational cyclists took the opportunity to experience the challenge and fun of cycling and the excitement of the Tour Down Under. Again, records were broken, with an unprecedented 4,223 cyclists taking part—including, as I have already mentioned, two of our own members of parliament. The media coverage was incredible.

Members interjecting:

The Hon. M.D. RANN: Hang on. I want the shadow minister to listen to this. The media coverage was incredible, with 202 accredited media covering the event: a 44 per cent increase over 2007. To date the Tour Down Under has generated more than 550 online media articles in 25 nations. The eyes of the world were focused on South Australia as the Tour Down Under was broadcast through television partners in Australia, New Zealand, the United States and throughout Asia and Europe.

Of course, the Liberals say that we should have it in winter time—that is a good idea—so that, during the European summer, people in Europe can have glimpses of the South Australian winter. Does that make any sense in tourism terms? What we saw day after day in continuous television coverage was glorious blue skies, beautiful vineyards, fantastic white beaches, colourful regional townships, the Adelaide Hills and a stunning city providing a spectacular and enticing backdrop to the race action.

I would like to see the deputy leader respect Joan Hall today in giving support to the Tour Down Under. Here is a way for a reconciliation. Next year we can call it the Tour Down Under Truth and Reconciliation Event with the Liberals all coming together. We will put them in a line. We will put the deputy leader next to Joan Hall and all play happy families! Of course, there is increasing evidence that the state government's increased investment in the Tour Down Under is paying dividends for our tourism industry. I know that members opposite want me to keep going. The accolades keep coming from cyclists and Tour Down Under fans around the world. For example, these are the comments from the 2005 Tour Down Under winner, Luis Leon Shanchez of the Caisse d'Epargne team (pronounced Kas Deparn):

I came here one week before the race. I rode four, five or six hours every day. It is a much more efficient training than in Europe and the Tour Down Under is very profitable for building up my condition. It's worth coming so far. It's also a different atmosphere from what we're used to in Europe. I'd say the enthusiasm is higher in Australia. People cheer at us more than the European fans do.

Also, Steve of Scotland made this comment:

The Tour Down Under got worldwide coverage. I watched it here in Scotland. It was a long advert for South Australia—the vineyards, the miles of beaches, the city were there for all to see. How much is that publicity worth? I'm sorry I was not there in person to see it but I will be there soon to see the beauty that is South Australia.

Now, as we close in on the finish line, I am pleased to report that UCI officials here to witness the first Pro Tour event outside Europe were also impressed. Alain Rumpf, UCI Pro Tour Manager, said :

[that the Tour Down Under was] comparable in many respects to the Tour de France. The comments from the riders and managers who came have been very good. Some were doubtful before coming here but now they are convinced this is a great race.

The public came out and supported it. The television audience of several hundred million people saw fantastic vision of South Australia. The only people to attack the race were the South Australian Liberals.