Baden Cooke

Baden Cooke (born 12 October 1978) is an Australian retired professional racing cyclist, who competed professionally between 2000 and 2013.
Early life
Born in Benalla, Victoria, Cooke began competitive cycling at 11. He completed secondary school at Galen College in Wangaratta, Victoria, and was an Australian Institute of Sport scholarship holder.
Career
His professional career began with the Mercury team in 2000, though he found racing in Europe to be more challenging than initially expected. Nevertheless, he adapted. He was more successful during that debut season in Australia and America, where he won stages of the Herald Sun Tour and the Sea Otter Classic, respectively. Having moved to the French team Française des Jeux in 2002, Cooke competed in the Commonwealth Games that year, finishing third behind fellow Australians Stuart O'Grady and Cadel Evans. He also participated in the Tour de France in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2008 and 2012. In 2003 he won the Green jersey which is the Points classification in the Tour de France by two points in a tight finish on Stage 20 on the Champs-Élysées with fellow Australian sprinter Robbie McEwen second and O'Grady seventh in the final points classification. In 2004 Cooke came 12th in the points classification.
Cooke represented Australia in the road race at the 2004 Summer Olympics along with McEwen, Michael Rogers, O'Grady and Matt White.
Cooke raced 2006 and 2007 for Unibet.com. He joined Barloworld for 2008 but in 2009 moved to Dutch cycling team Vacansoleil. Cooke announced on his website that he would ride for Team Saxo Bank in 2010 – he continued with that team in 2011, before moving to the new team for the 2012 season. After the 2013 season, Cooke retired.
After retiring, Cooke announced that he was moving into rider management. In January 2014 he became the agent of former team-mate and winner of the 2013 Vuelta a España Chris Horner. He subsequently also became agent for Michael Matthews, Gert Steegmans and Janez Brajkovič.
He recently purchased a stake in Factor bikes and Black Inc wheels.
Television appearances
In 2021, Cooke competed on Australian Survivor: Brains V Brawn.
Career highlights
Major results
1996
1st National Junior Points Race Championships
1st Bendigo Tour
1st Criterium Bike SA Race
2000
1st National Madison Championships
1st Prix de Bles d'Or
Rapport Tour
1st Points classification
1st Stage 7
Herald Sun Tour
1st Stages 2, 5 & 9
1st Criterium competition
2001
Tour de l'Avenir
1st Points classification
1st Stages 6 & 10
1st Stage 4 Sea Otter Classic
2002
1st Overall Herald Sun Tour
1st Stages 2 & 4
1st Overall Paris–Corrèze
1st Stages 1
1st Dwars door Vlaanderen
1st Tro-Bro Léon
1st Stage 1 GP du Midi Libre
1st Stage 8 Circuit des Mines
3rd Road race, Commonwealth Games
3rd GP Ouest France-Plouay
5th Paris–Brussels
9th Road race, UCI Road World Championships
2003
1st Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen
1st Grand Prix de Fourmies
Tour de France
1st Points classification
1st Stage 2
Tour Down Under
1st Stages 1 & 4
1st Stage 9 Tour de Suisse
1st Stage 3 Tour Méditerranéen
2nd Dwars door Vlaanderen
4th Paris–Tours
7th Paris–Bourges
2004
1st Overall Bay Classic Series
1st Grand Prix d'Ouverture La Marseillaise
Herald Sun Tour
1st Stages 2, 3 & 5
Tour Méditerranéen
1st Stages 1 & 3
1st Stage 2 Three Days of De Panne
3rd Overall Tour Down Under
1st Stage 6
2005
Herald Sun Tour
1st Stages 4 & 5
1st Stage 1 Tour of Poland
5th Dwars door Vlaanderen
6th Gent–Wevelgem
2006
1st Grand Prix d'Ouverture La Marseillaise
1st Halle–Ingooigem
1st Stage 1 Course de la Paix
1st Stage 5 Tour de Wallonie
5th Overall Tour of Denmark
6th Paris–Tours
10th E3 Prijs Vlaanderen
2007
1st Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen
1st Stage 3 Tour Down Under
1st Stage 2 Étoile de Bessèges
4th Paris–Brussels
6th Omloop Het Volk
8th Gent–Wevelgem
2008
1st Stage 2 Clásica Internacional de Alcobendas y Villalba
1st Stage 1 Geelong Bay Classic Series
1st Stage 3 Herald Sun Tour
2009
1st Stage 4 Herald Sun Tour
2010
1st Stage 4 Bay Classic Series
2011
2nd Paris–Bourges
5th Dwars door Vlaanderen
10th Gent–Wevelgem
Grand Tour general classification results timeline
References
External links
Australian Cycling Federation profile
Baden Cooke's profile at Cycling Base
1978 births
Living people
Australian male cyclists
Australian Tour de France stage winners
Tour de Suisse stage winners
Cyclists at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Olympic cyclists for Australia
Cyclists at the 2002 Commonwealth Games
People from Benalla
Cyclists from Victoria (state)
Australian Institute of Sport cyclists
Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Australia
Commonwealth Games medallists in cycling
Medallists at the 2002 Commonwealth Games
Sportsmen from Victoria (state)
Survivor (franchise) contestants
Participants in Australian reality television series