# 2011 Tour Down Under

The 2011 Santos Tour Down Under was the 13th edition of the Tour Down Under stage race. It took place from 18 to 23 January in and around Adelaide, South Australia, and was the first race of the 2011 UCI World Tour. The Tour was preceded by the Cancer Council Classic race, on Sunday, 16 January, that consisted in a circuit of 30 laps around the Rymill Park in Adelaide's East End, totaling 51 kilometres (32 mi).
The race was won by Garmin–Cervélo rider Cameron Meyer, after holding onto the leader's ochre jersey which came from a breakaway stage win on stage four. Meyer's winning margin over runner-up and fellow Australian Matthew Goss (HTC–Highroad) – winner of the first stage of the race – was just two seconds, the equal second smallest margin in the race's history. Team Sky's Ben Swift – a stage winner on the second and final stages – completed the podium, eight seconds down on Meyer.
In the race's other classifications, overall winner Meyer also guaranteed himself the black jersey for the highest placed rider under the age of 26, and Goss took home the blue jersey for amassing the highest number of points during stages at intermediate sprints and stage finishes. UniSA-Australia rider Luke Roberts won the King of the Mountains classification, with Movistar Team finishing at the head of the teams classification.

## Overall favourites

The 2011 Tour Down Under was a very exciting race this year as Mark Cavendish of HTC–Highroad marked his first appearance ever. Germany's André Greipel left Mark Cavendish's team of Team HTC–Columbia in 2010 and joined Omega Pharma–Lotto, creating a rivalry between two top sprinters. Greipel, the leader of Omega Pharma–Lotto tried to take full advantage of his captaincy and win his third Tour Down Under.
Although he was not expected to be an overall contender, the 2011 Tour marks Lance Armstrong's last race outside the U.S. as a professional cyclist.

## Participating teams

As the Tour Down Under was a UCI World Tour event, all UCI ProTeams were invited automatically and obligated to send a squad.
UCI ProTeams:
| Ag2r–La Mondiale Astana BMC Racing Team Euskaltel–Euskadi Garmin–Cervélo Lampre–ISD | Liquigas–Cannondale Quick-Step Omega Pharma–Lotto Rabobank HTC–Highroad Team Katusha | Leopard Trek Movistar Team Team RadioShack Saxo Bank–SunGard Team Sky Vacansoleil–DCM |
Teams awarded a wildcard invitation:
* Uni SA-Australia

## Schedule

| Stage | Route | Distance | Date | Winner |
| 1 | Mawson Lakes > Angaston | 138 km (86 mi) | Tuesday, 18 January | Matthew Goss (AUS) |
| 2 | Tailem Bend > Mannum | 146 km (91 mi) | Wednesday, 19 January | Ben Swift (GBR) |
| 3 | Unley > Stirling | 129 km (80 mi) | Thursday, 20 January | Michael Matthews (AUS) |
| 4 | Norwood > Strathalbyn | 124 km (77 mi) | Friday, 21 January | Cameron Meyer (AUS) |
| 5 | McLaren Vale > Willunga | 131 km (81 mi) | Saturday, 22 January | Francisco Ventoso (ESP) |
| 6 | Adelaide > Adelaide | 90 km (56 mi) | Sunday, 23 January | Ben Swift (GBR) |

## Stages
### Stage 1, Mawson Lakes to Angaston

| | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Matthew Goss (AUS) | HTC–Highroad | 3h 17' 08" |
| 2 | André Greipel (GER) | Omega Pharma–Lotto | s.t. |
| 3 | Robbie McEwen (AUS) | Team RadioShack | s.t. |
| 4 | Christopher Sutton (AUS) | Team Sky | s.t. |
| 5 | Elia Viviani (ITA) | Liquigas–Cannondale | s.t. |
| 6 | Romain Feillu (FRA) | Vacansoleil–DCM | s.t. |
| 7 | Alessandro Ballan (ITA) | BMC Racing Team | s.t. |
| 8 | Iñaki Isasi (ESP) | Euskaltel–Euskadi | s.t. |
| 9 | José Joaquín Rojas (ESP) | Movistar Team | s.t. |
| 10 | Greg Henderson (NZL) | Team Sky | s.t. |
| | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Matthew Goss (AUS) | HTC–Highroad | 3h 16' 58" |
| 2 | André Greipel (GER) | Omega Pharma–Lotto | + 4" |
| 3 | Robbie McEwen (AUS) | Team RadioShack | + 6" |
| 4 | Mitchell Docker (AUS) | UniSA-Australia | + 7" |
| 5 | Mathieu Perget (FRA) | Ag2r–La Mondiale | + 7" |
| 6 | Simon Clarke (AUS) | Astana | + 7" |
| 7 | Miguel Minguez (ESP) | Euskaltel–Euskadi | + 7" |
| 8 | Christopher Sutton (AUS) | Team Sky | + 10" |
| 9 | Elia Viviani (ITA) | Liquigas–Cannondale | + 10" |
| 10 | Romain Feillu (FRA) | Vacansoleil–DCM | + 10" |

### Stage 2, Tailem Bend to Mannum

| | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Ben Swift (GBR) | Team Sky | 3h 27' 44" |
| 2 | Robbie McEwen (AUS) | Team RadioShack | s.t. |
| 3 | Graeme Brown (AUS) | Rabobank | s.t. |
| 4 | Romain Feillu (FRA) | Vacansoleil–DCM | s.t. |
| 5 | Jürgen Roelandts (BEL) | Omega Pharma–Lotto | s.t. |
| 6 | Francesco Chicchi (ITA) | Quick-Step | s.t. |
| 7 | Michael Matthews (AUS) | Rabobank | s.t. |
| 8 | Denis Galimzyanov (RUS) | Team Katusha | s.t. |
| 9 | Francisco Ventoso (ESP) | Movistar Team | s.t. |
| 10 | Allan Davis (AUS) | Astana | s.t. |
| | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Robbie McEwen (AUS) | Team RadioShack | 6h 44' 42" |
| 2 | Matthew Goss (AUS) | HTC–Highroad | + 0" |
| 3 | Ben Swift (GBR) | Team Sky | + 0" |
| 4 | André Greipel (GER) | Omega Pharma–Lotto | + 4" |
| 5 | Mitchell Docker (AUS) | UniSA-Australia | + 4" |
| 6 | Graeme Brown (AUS) | Rabobank | + 6" |
| 7 | David Tanner (AUS) | Saxo Bank–SunGard | + 6" |
| 8 | Mathieu Perget (FRA) | Ag2r–La Mondiale | + 7" |
| 9 | Miguel Minguez (ESP) | Euskaltel–Euskadi | + 7" |
| 10 | Simon Zahner (SWI) | BMC Racing Team | + 7" |

### Stage 3, Unley to Stirling

| | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Michael Matthews (AUS) | Rabobank | 3h 11' 47" |
| 2 | André Greipel (GER) | Omega Pharma–Lotto | s.t. |
| 3 | Matthew Goss (AUS) | HTC–Highroad | s.t. |
| 4 | Simon Gerrans (AUS) | Team Sky | s.t. |
| 5 | Luke Roberts (AUS) | UniSA-Australia | s.t. |
| 6 | Francisco Ventoso (ESP) | Movistar Team | s.t. |
| 7 | Gorka Izagirre (ESP) | Euskaltel–Euskadi | s.t. |
| 8 | Allan Davis (AUS) | Astana | s.t. |
| 9 | Blel Kadri (FRA) | Ag2r–La Mondiale | s.t. |
| 10 | Simone Ponzi (ITA) | Liquigas–Cannondale | s.t. |
| | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Matthew Goss (AUS) | HTC–Highroad | 9h 56' 25" |
| 2 | André Greipel (GER) | Omega Pharma–Lotto | + 2" |
| 3 | Robbie McEwen (AUS) | Team RadioShack | + 4" |
| 4 | Michael Matthews (AUS) | Rabobank | + 4" |
| 5 | Ben Swift (GBR) | Team Sky | + 4" |
| 6 | Allan Davis (AUS) | Astana | + 14" |
| 7 | Francisco Ventoso (ESP) | Movistar Team | + 14" |
| 8 | Manuele Mori (ITA) | Lampre–ISD | + 14" |
| 9 | Alessandro Ballan (ITA) | BMC Racing Team | + 14" |
| 10 | Greg Henderson (NZL) | Team Sky | + 14" |

### Stage 4, Norwood to Strathalbyn

| | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Cameron Meyer (AUS) | Garmin–Cervélo | 2h 57' 55" |
| 2 | Thomas De Gendt (BEL) | Vacansoleil–DCM | s.t. |
| 3 | Laurens ten Dam (NED) | Rabobank | + 3" |
| 4 | Matthew Wilson (AUS) | Garmin–Cervélo | + 10" |
| 5 | Matthew Goss (AUS) | HTC–Highroad | + 24" |
| 6 | José Joaquín Rojas (ESP) | Movistar Team | + 24" |
| 7 | Ben Swift (GBR) | Team Sky | + 24" |
| 8 | Jürgen Roelandts (BEL) | Omega Pharma–Lotto | + 24" |
| 9 | Nikolay Trusov (RUS) | Team Katusha | + 24" |
| 10 | Romain Feillu (FRA) | Vacansoleil–DCM | + 24" |
| | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Cameron Meyer (AUS) | Garmin–Cervélo | 12h 54' 30" |
| 2 | Laurens ten Dam (NED) | Rabobank | + 10" |
| 3 | Matthew Goss (AUS) | HTC–Highroad | + 12" |
| 4 | Robbie McEwen (AUS) | Team RadioShack | + 15" |
| 5 | André Greipel (GER) | Omega Pharma–Lotto | + 16" |
| 6 | Michael Matthews (AUS) | Rabobank | + 18" |
| 7 | Ben Swift (GBR) | Team Sky | + 18" |
| 8 | Blel Kadri (FRA) | Ag2r–La Mondiale | + 26" |
| 9 | Francisco Ventoso (ESP) | Movistar Team | + 27" |
| 10 | Allan Davis (AUS) | Astana | + 28" |

### Stage 5, McLaren Vale to Willunga

| | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Francisco Ventoso (ESP) | Movistar Team | 3h 06' 10" |
| 2 | Michael Matthews (AUS) | Rabobank | s.t. |
| 3 | Matthew Goss (AUS) | HTC–Highroad | s.t. |
| 4 | José Joaquín Rojas (ESP) | Movistar Team | s.t. |
| 5 | Luke Roberts (AUS) | UniSA-Australia | s.t. |
| 6 | Robert Hunter (RSA) | Team RadioShack | s.t. |
| 7 | Blel Kadri (FRA) | Ag2r–La Mondiale | s.t. |
| 8 | Alessandro Ballan (ITA) | BMC Racing Team | s.t. |
| 9 | Ben Hermans (BEL) | Team RadioShack | s.t. |
| 10 | Ben Swift (GBR) | Team Sky | s.t. |
| | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Cameron Meyer (AUS) | Garmin–Cervélo | 16h 00' 40" |
| 2 | Matthew Goss (AUS) | HTC–Highroad | + 8" |
| 3 | Laurens ten Dam (NED) | Rabobank | + 10" |
| 4 | Michael Matthews (AUS) | Rabobank | + 12" |
| 5 | Francisco Ventoso (ESP) | Movistar Team | + 17" |
| 6 | Ben Swift (GBR) | Team Sky | + 18" |
| 7 | Blel Kadri (FRA) | Ag2r–La Mondiale | + 26" |
| 8 | André Greipel (GER) | Omega Pharma–Lotto | + 27" |
| 9 | Allan Davis (AUS) | Astana | + 28" |
| 10 | Luke Roberts (AUS) | UniSA-Australia | + 28" |

### Stage 6, Adelaide to Adelaide

| | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Ben Swift (GBR) | Team Sky | 1h 53' 47" |
| 2 | Greg Henderson (NZL) | Team Sky | s.t. |
| 3 | Matthew Goss (AUS) | HTC–Highroad | s.t. |
| 4 | Robbie McEwen (AUS) | Team RadioShack | s.t. |
| 5 | Juan José Haedo (ARG) | Saxo Bank–SunGard | s.t. |
| 6 | Allan Davis (AUS) | Astana | s.t. |
| 7 | André Greipel (GER) | Omega Pharma–Lotto | s.t. |
| 8 | Romain Feillu (FRA) | Vacansoleil–DCM | s.t. |
| 9 | Davide Viganò (ITA) | Leopard Trek | s.t. |
| 10 | Jonathan Cantwell (AUS) | UniSA-Australia | s.t. |
| | Rider | Team | Time |
| 1 | Cameron Meyer (AUS) | Garmin–Cervélo | 17h 54' 27" |
| 2 | Matthew Goss (AUS) | HTC–Highroad | + 2" |
| 3 | Ben Swift (GBR) | Team Sky | + 8" |
| 4 | Michael Matthews (AUS) | Rabobank | + 9" |
| 5 | Laurens ten Dam (NED) | Rabobank | + 10" |
| 6 | Francisco Ventoso (ESP) | Movistar Team | + 17" |
| 7 | André Greipel (GER) | Omega Pharma–Lotto | + 26" |
| 8 | Blel Kadri (FRA) | Ag2r–La Mondiale | + 26" |
| 9 | Allan Davis (AUS) | Astana | + 27" |
| 10 | Luke Roberts (AUS) | UniSA-Australia | + 28" |

## Classification leadership

In the 2011 Tour Down Under, six different jerseys were awarded. For the general classification, calculated by adding each cyclist's finishing times on each stage, and allowing time bonuses for the first three finishers on each stage and in intermediate sprints, the leader received an ochre jersey. This classification was considered the most important of the Tour Down Under, and the winner was considered the winner of the Tour.
Additionally, there was a sprint classification, which awarded a blue jersey. In the sprint classification, cyclists earned points for finishing in the top three in a stage or intermediate sprint, with the top three finishers in the stage getting 8, 6, and 4 points respectively, and the top three in the intermediate sprints getting 6, 4, and 2.
There was also a mountains classification, which awarded a white jersey. In the mountains classifications, points were won by reaching the top of a mountain before other cyclists. Unlike most other cycling events, there was no categorization of climbs as each awards the same points (16, 12, 8, 6, and 4) to the first five riders past the summit.
The fourth jersey represented the young rider classification. This classification awarded a black jersey.
Due to UCI rules limiting the number of jersey awards to four, the above are the only jerseys awarded to riders which were then worn the next day during the stage. But there were two other jerseys. The first was the red jersey for the most aggressive rider. This award was comparable to the combativity award of the Tour de France. While the rider received a red jersey on the podium after the stage, he wore his normal jersey (unless holding one of the above four) in the next stage, with the aggressive rider award indicated by a red bib number.
The sixth and final jersey was for the teams classification. This jersey was not presented on the podiums daily, but it was awarded to the winning team at the end of the Tour. The teams classification was calculated by adding the times of each team's best four riders per stage per day. The jersey was blue.
| Stage | Winner | General Classification | Mountains Classification | Sprint Classification | Young Rider Classification | Team Classification | Aggressive Rider |
| 1 | Matthew Goss | Matthew Goss | Luke Roberts | Matthew Goss | Matthew Goss | Team Sky | Simon Clarke |
| 2 | Ben Swift | Robbie McEwen | Luke Roberts | Mitchell Docker | Matthew Goss | Team Sky | Yuriy Krivtsov |
| 3 | Michael Matthews | Matthew Goss | Luke Roberts | Matthew Goss | Matthew Goss | Team Sky | Luke Durbridge |
| 4 | Cameron Meyer | Cameron Meyer | Luke Roberts | Thomas De Gendt | Cameron Meyer | Garmin–Cervélo | Thomas De Gendt |
| 5 | Francisco Ventoso | Cameron Meyer | Luke Roberts | Matthew Goss | Cameron Meyer | Movistar Team | Richie Porte |
| 6 | Ben Swift | Cameron Meyer | Luke Roberts | Matthew Goss | Cameron Meyer | Movistar Team | Stuart O'Grady |
| Final | Final | Cameron Meyer | Luke Roberts | Matthew Goss | Cameron Meyer | Movistar Team | – |