First introduced in 2012 as a stage decider, the Willunga Hill climb has been an integral part of the men’s Tour Down Under in the decade since.
The famous hill has only once since been missed from the season-opening race – in 2023 when new race director Stuart O’Grady took over from Mike Turtur and made his own mark on the Australian WorldTour race by including a Mount Lofty summit finish instead.
This year, following its successful introduction as the race decider at the Women's Tour Down Under, where Sarah Gigante soloed to victory, the climb is back in the men's race.
Mount Lofty might still remain as the stage that will crown the overall winner, but the popular first-category climb up Willunga makes its return on Saturday's stage 5. That will see the peloton once again tackle the climb, which the race technical guide puts at a 3 kilometre ascent with an average gradient of 7.4% and maximum of 15.6%. This time it will be climbed on two occasions.
The second time up, at the end of the 129.3km stage, the riders will finish at the hill's summit, a place where the battle for GC will start to unfold after four flatter stages, where chances to stretch out time gaps have been slim.
Heading into the stage, 20-year-old Isaac Del Toro, a neo-pro with UAE Team Emirates, is at the top of the GC ranking after winning stage 2 with a late attack.
Classics star Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty) lies in second at one second back while Corbin Strong (Israel-Premier Tech) is third a further second back. Behind the leading trio, 66 more men lie close back, between 5-11 seconds down. The overall battle is wide open as the race heads into the final weekend.
The famous climb has actually been a staple of the race since its introduction at the 2003 edition. Then it featured before the finish as Giampaolo Caruso beat Steffen Weseman to the line before later being stripped of the win after testing positive for Nandrolone. However, it's only since 2012 that the climb has featured as the stage finish, with intervening years bringing winners as varied as Alberto Contador, André Greipel, Luis León Sánchez, and Allan Davis.
This year, the climb is back in the WorldTour race for the first time since 2020, thanks to COVID-19 cancellations in 2021 and 2022 and O'Grady's distinctive route last January.
As the six-stage WorldTour race in South Australia, which started the WorldTour racing for the season on Tuesday, heads towards the top of Willunga Hill once again on stage 5 we take a look at the stage winners at the top of the stage finishing climb since 2012.
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2012 – Valverde outsprints Gerrans
Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) scored his first win since his return from a doping suspension, outsprinting Australian champion Simon Gerrans (Orica-GreenEdge) at the top as Gerrans rose to the race lead.
Valverde went on to finish second overall to Gerrans and would go on to enjoy a successful 2012 campaign, winning the Vuelta a Andalucía, a stage of the Tour de France at Peyragudes, two plus the points jersey at the Vuelta a España, and bronze at the Valkenburg Worlds.
"I'm super happy," said Valverde later. "My team has been perfect today. I couldn't have won without them. It's a really emotional moment for me. This win is for all those who have supported me during my time off the bike.
"The stage suited me - we put the team at the front, and to finish it off - it's a perfect comeback for me."
2013 – Gerrans outpaces Jelte-Slagter
2012 may have been Gerrans' second Tour Down Under win, though he wasn't in the mix for the overall win the next year after shedding minutes early in the race.
He'd come out on top up Willunga Hill, though, beating Tom Jelte-Slagter (Blanco Pro Cycling) to the line on Australia Day to take his first win in a season that would see him claim his second career Tour de France stage win on Corsica.
"I never gave up until right to the line," Gerrans said after the win. "Especially when the young Blanco guy jumped across to us and went straight past. I had to get straight on his wheel and try and come past in the final.
"I guess we've had two finished up here and I was second last year and had a win this year. It's a nice way to round out the week."
2014 – Porte's first victory
Richie Porte's (Sky) name will forever be synonymous with Willunga Hill, having celebrated victory at the top seven times across the Tour Down Under and Santos Festival of Cycling.
The Tasmanian scored his first win up the hill on his third Tour Down Under participation. His manner of victory was a unique one, becoming the first man to solo to the top after leaving behind top puncheurs including Diego Ulissi (Lampre-Merida) and Simon Gerrans (Orica-GreenEdge).
It would be his only win of the 2014 season following a breakout 2013 as Gerrans ascended into the lead on the way to a third career Tour Down Under title.
"It's January, I'm not yet in top form just yet but to win in Australia on this climb is a very special victory," Porte said. "Winning here means everything for me. Sky is such a great team. It's a great way to repay them for the belief they have in me."
2015 – Another dominant Porte ride
Fresh from winning the Australian time trial title, Richie Porte was once again in top form on Willunga as he raced to a second victory in a row up the famous hill.
He'd beat future BMC teammate Rohan Dennis to the top by nine seconds after launching two major attacks partway up the climb. However, it wasn't enough to unseat the race leader, who held on by two seconds.
The win was the second of nine for Porte in 2015 as he went on to capture Paris-Nice, the Volta a Catalunya, and the Giro del Trentino. The Tour Down Under title would have to wait, though.
"I know this climb really, really well, better than the finish in Paracaombe," Porte said after the stage. "I'm just disappointed that I came short of getting the jersey."
2016 – New team, same result for Porte
2016 saw Richie Porte make his debut in BMC colours, but despite the change of team, it was the same old Porte on the road up Willunga Hill.
Porte went clear just outside a kilometre to go, taking Sergio Henao (Sky) and Michael Woods (Cannondale) with him before dropping both on the run to the line to claim victory number three – albeit once again falling seconds short of the race lead, held for a fourth time by Simon Gerrans.
"To be honest, I never expected that one," Porte said later. "Obviously, it didn’t go to plan yesterday with the time gap on the line but today the BMC guys were incredible.
"They backed me here, which is nice and I’ve only just started here with his team and its nice to win in Australia on top of Willunga. It's three in a row now."
2017 – A Porte annihilation
Having taken three wins in a row up Willunga Hill only to lose out on overall victory by one, two, and nine seconds in the three previous editions of the Tour Down Under, Richie Porte left nothing to chance in 2017.
Already in the race lead since a stage 2 solo victory, the 31-year-old once again went solo, jumping clear 2km from the line on the race's penultimate stage. The likes of Nathan Haas (Dimension Data) and Esteban Chaves (Orica-Scott) could only watch as Porte rode away to win by 20 seconds and secure his first overall title.
"I think it will make tomorrow a little bit more relaxed for us," Porte said with the win all but in the bag.
"This is not an easy climb, so to win it is great for morale. Obviously, the biggest goal this year is in July at the Tour de France, but things are going well."
2018 – Five in a row for Porte
Richie Porte made it five wins in five years in 2018, distancing Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-Scott) and Tom Jelte-Slagter (Dimension Data) with two big attacks inside the final 2km.
He's put eight seconds between himself and Impey by the line, but the South African clung onto the race lead by virtue of stage positions with the pair tied on time. It was another Willunga win for Porte, but another Tour Down Under second place – his fourth, by a total margin of 12 seconds.
"I tell you what that was the hardest one to win so far," Porte said after taking the win.
2019 – Guess who? Number six...
Richie Porte's sixth stage win atop Willunga Hill was his closest, as he led home Wout Poels (Sky) and Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-Scott) by less than a second on the 2019 race's final stage.
Porte enjoyed a to-and-fro battle with the Dutchman before coming out on top, while Impey, on the way to a second overall crown, rode at his own pace to finish just a few lengths back. For Porte, it was the best way to start of his spell at Trek-Segafredo after a three-year stint at BMC, though he was once again second on the podium, 13 seconds behind Impey.
"It's a hard race for someone like me to win, with just one uphill finish but I came here with my new team and the boys were fantastic all week and today," Porte said at the finish.
"Hats off to Daryl Impey but to win on Willunga for a sixth time is a great feeling. It's a great way to start the year with a new team."
2020 – Holmes surges to surprise Porte
Richie Porte may not have won a seventh stage up Willunga Hill in what would prove to be his final Tour Down Under, but he would walk away with a second overall title despite losing out to Matthew Holmes (Lotto Soudal) on the climb.
The Briton was the strongest man left from the break of the day, in the end proving so tough that even the King of Willunga couldn't drop him on the uphill road to the line.
He'd hold on and outkick Porte in the closing metres, though the Australian could still celebrate after overhauling a two-second deficit to Daryl Impey to win the race for a second time.
"It would have been nice to be the king of Willunga Hill again but I'll take the ochre jersey any day," Porte said afterwards. "It's fantastic to win again. For our team to also win the Women's Tour Down Under and then for me to win the men's race, it's a great race for us."
2021-22 – The Santos Festival of Cycling
In the absence of the international WorldTour race due to the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting travel restrictions, the Australian peloton came together in 2021 and 2022 to take on the Santos Festival of Cycling.
Willunga Hill featured in both men's and women's races in 2021 as Richie Porte continued his domination for a seventh win atop the climb and Sarah Gigante previewed her 2023 Tour Down Under display with a dominant ride. In 2022, local rider Angus Lyons soloed home for an upset win as Porte savoured his last ride up his favourite hill.
2024 – Gigante dominates
While the men's race has enjoyed, and endured, the climb up Willunga Hill for a decade, it was only this year that saw the Women's Tour Down Under take on the climb.
And as the men's race has time after time, the climb brought a home winner as Sarah Gigante – resplendent in her new AG Insurance-Soudal colours after a transfer from Movistar – soloed home. The 22-year-old attacked from the bottom of the climb, drawing several others with her before pushing on solo for the biggest win of her career to date.
"I can't even begin to tell you much that means after the last one here three years ago [at the Santos Festival of Cycling]. It felt like everything went wrong since then in so many ways," Gigante said afterwards.
"To come back full circle and with my new team and they believe in me so much and I’m just so grateful to everyone who kept believing in me. It’s so special."
