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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2018-06-06 Daily Xml
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Turtur, Mr M.

Ms BETTISON (Ramsay) (15:26): On Wednesday 23 May, I was honoured to attend a Lord Mayoral reception at the Adelaide Town Hall to award Mike Turtur AO the key to the City of Adelaide. Mike Turtur is a true South Australian legend. Born and bred in Adelaide, Mike's involvement in the sport began with his first visit to a velodrome to watch his brother in a race. He instantly fell in love with cycling and determined he would one day compete for his country at the Olympic Games. With the signature Mike Turtur determination, that is exactly what he did.

In a stellar cycling career Mike went on to become both a Commonwealth Games and Olympic medallist. At the 1982 Brisbane Commonwealth Games he won two gold medals—in the men's 4,000 metre team pursuit and the men's individual pursuit—as well as a bronze medal in the 10 mile scratch race. In 1984, at the Los Angeles Olympics he won a gold medal in the men's 4,000 metre team pursuit, and in 1986 he was the flag bearer for Australia at the Edinburgh Commonwealth Games, winning another gold medal for the same event.

Yet in some ways this is where Mike's story really begins. Wanting to share his knowledge and experience, Mike went on to become the coach of the South Australian Sports Institute sport cycling program for five years. From 1993, he was manager and promoter at the Adelaide Super-Drome, headquarters of the highly successful Australian Institute of Sport's women's and men's track cycling program. In 1990, he also opened his business, Mike Turtur Cycles, with his brother Greg.

Of all his achievements, perhaps the most significant was Mike's work in establishing what is now internationally acclaimed as the Tour Down Under. There is little doubt that Mike played an integral role in working with the then Olsen state government to launch this first Tour Down Under. He was appointed to the position of race director and it is a position he has held ever since. To cap the achievement, the inaugural race was won by South Australian Stuart O'Grady.

The organisers anticipated that between 10,000 and 15,000 people would attend the first circuit; however, more than 40,000 South Australians turned up, many out of curiosity, never having seen a race before. That was perhaps symbolic of the success that was to follow. In 2007, then premier Mike Rann and then tourism minister Jane Lomax-Smith launched a campaign for the Tour Down Under to become the first race outside Europe to secure Pro Tour status from the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). This is the world governing body for sport cycling and overseas international competitive cycling events. Pro Tour status would guarantee all the world's top teams would participate.

This was an incredibly bold and ambitious move, and there is little doubt that the leadership of and respect in which Mike Turtur was held within the international cycling community was a significant contributor to the result. In 2008, the Tour Down Under became the first UCI Pro Tour in Australia, and the following year it became the inaugural event in the UCI world-ranking calendar. Officially, South Australia was on the world international cycling stage.

The event has also led to an increase in diversity and opportunity for female cyclists. In 2012, the event hosted a series of women's street criterium races, making it the first time female athletes participated in the event. In 2015, the annual women's race was established as part of the National Road Series, and in 2016 it was granted UCI status. Now operating as the Santos Women's Tour Down Under, the 2018 event saw elite international women's teams commence their season in Adelaide.

In January this year, Mike was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for 'distinguished services to cycling, particularly through the development and promotion of world-class cycling events, and to the community of South Australia'. This year, in its 20th year, the Tour Down Under injected $63.7 million into the South Australian economy, creating 774 jobs. When we celebrated the 20th anniversary, Mike expressed confidence that the event will continue to grow and develop for many years to come. Mike's story is amazing and inspirational. In the words of internationally hailed voice of cycling, Phil Liggett 'Mike's sold this country to the world, and by this country, I mean South Australia.'

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